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Ken Ogata, Rentaro Mikuni, Chocho Miyako, Mitsuko Baisho, Mayumi Ogawa ... see more see more... , Nijiko Kiyokawa , Frankie Sakai , Moeko Ezawa , Toshie Negishi

A gut-wrenching, violent psychological crime drama from start to finish, this award-winning film by noted Japanese director Shohei Imamura is based on a true story. Iwao Enokizu (Ken Ogata) is a murde... read more read more...rous sociopath who kills two money lenders in a gory opening scene. Then flashbacks are interspersed with Enokizu's flight across Japan as his miserable childhood and the development of his malevolent, anti-social behavior are portrayed. Vicious and sexually aggressive, Enokizu's rage simmers during an earlier stay in prison as he imagines his wife is bedding down his father. Once on the run from the police, his aberrant sexual life and violent nature are further revealed in a series of gripping events. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi

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87% liked it

2,207 ratings

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100% liked it

5 critics

Unrated, 2 hr. 9 min.

Directed by: Shohei Imamura

Release Date: October 17, 1979

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DVD Release Date: May 15, 2007

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Flixster Reviews (199)

  • Saxia
    September 30, 2010
    Saxia
    It is based on a true story, but somehow it just didn't make any sense. It doesn't attempt to give any answers or insight into the killers motives and psyche, and maybe that's the intention of the director, I don't know. But in my opinion that doesn't make it a very good movie.
  • sanjurosamurai
    June 16, 2009
    sanjurosamurai
    one of the most disturbing and highly effective films that i have ever seen. ken ogata is masterful as one of the most notorious serial killers in japanese history, and the film delivers near perfection on all ends from the acting, to the cinematography, to the script itself. t... read morehe fact that this is based on a true story is what secures its believability as a man who eluded a nationwide manhunt in plain sight. nothing feels gimicky or forced and we see enough of the killers life in flashbacks to understand his deranged nature but not too much as to detract from the story. imamuras directing and the editing are first rate in this absolute classic. a must see.
  • DrBenway
    March 30, 2009
    DrBenway
    Imamura's timeless film is a profile of a vicious sociopath which digs into the soul of (or lack thereof) its' central character and post-war Japan. Based on the story of a real-life criminal, Vengeance is Mine details the 78-day long killing-spree undertaken by Iwao Enokizu, w... read moreho doesn't seek revenge from one particular person as you'd expect out of a genre picture. In fact, the film is driven by the ways he's hurt throughout his life, and the counterintuitive ways he seeks revenge. Vengeance is Mine explores the roots of Iwao's murderous tendencies. It leaves exact causes vague, but explores a drive that leads him down the path to repeated murder.

    Imamura's affection for Japan's criminals, outcasts, minority groups comes through with style and energy coupled with darkest humor and context, and is an obvious inspiration for contemporary filmmakers, including former apprentice Takashi Miike.
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  • rubystevens
    October 5, 2008
    rubystevens
    powerful character study of a sociopath. ken ogata gives a great performance as conman iwao enokizu, a womanizing, haiku spouting serial killer, whose strange family relationships are illuminated through time-shifting flashbacks. based on a true story, it's no ordinary serial k... read moreiller film.
  • harrycaul
    October 3, 2008
    harrycaul
    An immensely powerful and relentlessly depressing Japanese study of a serial killer. What makes the film so distinctive - and so disturbing - is Imamura's unusual approach to the material. He deliberately avoids making easy excuses for Iwao Enokizu's sociopathic behaviour, and (i... read moren contrast to those Hollywood serial killer flicks, whose bad guys - however deranged - always work to some plan or design) his killer is, for once, disconcertingly unpredictable. Quite literally, we don't know what he's going to do next! A serial fraudster as well as a killer, certainly there's a monetary sub-motive for the murders, though Enokizu does not seem to be driven solely by greed and is also capable of generosity. If anything, those characters who court Enokizu's wrath and live to tell the tale outnumber his actual victims, but as his father explains: "You [Enokizu] can only kill people you don't hate"; as a rule of thumb, the innocent die first!

    Narrowly avoiding becoming confusing by way of careful signposting, the choppy narrative constantly flits back and forth in time, intercutting details of, for instance, Enokizu's crimes, the police manhunt, his interrogation, etc, with two core phases of character development. The first of these focuses on the potentially taboo relationship between Enokizu's devoutly Catholic father and his daughter-in-law, Enokizu's estranged wife, while the ne'er-do-well serves a jail term for fraud. His killing spree underway, the second phase follows the doomed friendship Enokizu forms with an innkeeper and her mother, the latter a convicted murderess, following his release from prison. There are a couple of notably surreal touches - not least the ending - which are completely at odds with the pseudo-documentary feel of most of the film. This could be the only movie in which you'll see a killer wash some blood off his hands with his own urine!
  • SarahG1988
    July 30, 2007
    SarahG1988
    Based on true events, the film chronicles the murderous rampage of one Iwao Enokizu (Ken Ogata) who, over the course of a 78-day crime spree, habitually killed and robbed countless victims.

    My first Japanese movie and I loved it. What was great about it was you just get sucked... read more in imediatly and can not take your eyes of the screen. All of the characters are developed well and you really get to understand the character of Iwao by the end of the movie and why he did what he did. Throughout the film you do begin to think, did this really happen aswell.

    Having not been familar with Shohei Imamura now I can see how great a director he really is. Imamura uses hand held camera at times and often makes the viewer feel like they are intruding on the characters, looking in on them. This creates an odd felling for the viewer as you watch it from outside. Just brilliant!

    Iwao's family is depicted almost like a pressure cooker, ready to explode. As his Father begins to have feeings for his Daughter-in Law. You begin to feel for Iwao there.

    The two narratives overlapping one another is also a high point of the movie. The events are constructed in a way that you get to see the murders and when he was arrested. The only thing that I had a problem with was the fact the time frames were a little confusing at times, and not specifaccly stated. So listening to the commentry done by a Film academic solve that problem there from the R2 version I have. Get that if you want to see this movie, as you'll understand it better.

    The ending was another high point which you should look out for. I don't want to give anything away, but yout get to understand the relationship with IWao and his Father.

    Overall an excellent film which I recomend to all.

    HIGHLY RECOMENDED
  • mjgildea
    May 24, 2007
    mjgildea
    Vengeance is Mine started off a little slow despite two brutal and disturbing killings. I'm always prepared to root for the bad guy despite their obvious unlikability but I initially couldn't get behind Iwao for the longest time with this movie. Eventually you're slowly pulled in... read more with his back story through a series of flashbacks. But the payoff is worth it. Picture a Japanese version of Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer.
  • gator681
    March 4, 2007
    gator681
    [font=Century Gothic]Directed by Shohei Imamura, "Vengeance is Mine" is the offbeat story of Iwao Enokizu(Ken Ogata), who killed five people in 1963. The movie begins after his capture by the police, then jumps around in time, first to the time of the first two killings, as Enok... read moreizu kills two workers for the money they were carrying, then even further back to an incident in his childhood, and other events in his past, as a way of affording glimpses into his soul. The most important thing to notice here is why Enokizu kills and who he pretends to be. Throughout this is not the typical movie about a killer, but what I think Imamura is doing is using the plot as a device to create a critical portrait of Japanese society and its hypocrisies. [/font]
  • lesleyanorton
    October 3, 2010
    lesleyanorton
    A strange title "Vengeance Is Mine"when it should be "Anatomy of a Murderer" as thats what we get for two hours; 78 days in the murderous life of Iwao Enokizu, cut with parallel stories of his family and a few flashbacks to his youth. Shohei Imamura lays it on the line, there's n... read moreo cop-out here of poor misunderstood killer, the man was a psychopath in the true sense of the word.
    .
  • jimbotender
    August 27, 2008
    jimbotender
    Transparent atmosphere by Imamura,the murderer syndrome is described as a serious obsession against one's will,forcing the mental desire to submit.More than a serial-killer film.

View All Vengeance Is Mine Reviews

Critic Reviews

Anton Bitel
August 10, 2007
Anton Bitel, Eye for Film

as messy as murder itself, Vengeance is Mine maps out the darker corners of a nation in transition and unwilling to confront its past directly. Full Review

Leo Goldsmith
February 11, 2006
Leo Goldsmith, Not Coming to a Theater Near You

In Vengeance Is Mine, Imamura seeks to demarcate a position outside of all of the conventional Japanese identity, and so his viewpoint, like Enokizu, evades capture. Full Review

Rich Cline
September 30, 2005
Rich Cline, Shadows on the Wall

Gripping and haunting, it's a strikingly timeless film. Full Review

Jeremy Heilman
July 16, 2003
Jeremy Heilman, MovieMartyr.com

Quite literally, Imamura has created here a protagonist that's impossible to put easily to rest, and the ramifications of his examination reflect upon us all by showing how much we're willing to ignor... Full Review

Vincent Canby
February 11, 2006
Vincent Canby, New York Times

Click to read the article Full Review

Emanuel Levy
November 8, 2005
Emanuel Levy, EmanuelLevy.Com

No review available.

June 24, 2006
Time Out

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February 11, 2006
BBC

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February 7, 2006
Film4

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