Whilst films from the US have struggled to really centre a female action lead Japan has been comfortable letting female protagonists take the centre stage for a while, and the Valiant Red Peony film series from the late 1960's and early 1970's showcases this well. Collecting together the first three films in the eight film series, Eureka Entertainment has given modern audiences a chance to discover these classic female led action films.
The series follows Oryū Hibotan, played across all eight films by Junko Fuji, a young woman who finds her life thrown upside down when her father, a Yakuza boss, is murdered. Despite her father wanting Oryū to get away from the family business his death ends up dragging her into a world of murder and revenge. Oryū vows to 'be a man', seeking our revenge and taking on the name Red Peony after the tattoo on her shoulder. Becoming a wandering Yakuza, the series follows Oryū from one adventure to another.
The first of the films charts her origins as the Red Peony, going after the people who murdered her father with the aid of a fellow wandering Yakuza named Katagiri Naoji (Ken Takakura). The second film sees Oryū getting involved with a gang trying to take over the silk trade in the area as they put the local villagers through hell; becoming the hero the village needs, she sets out to make things right for them. The third and final film in this sets sees Oryū on the trail of another female warrior, one who has been claiming to be her. Trying to repair her tarnished reputation, she discovers a pair of star-crossed lovers being used as pawns by rival gangs, and must try to broker a peace between the warring groups.
Having never heard of the Red Peony Gambler series before this set was announced I was interested to discover another lengthy Japanese film series. Having recently watched the first three films in the Abashira Prison series I was interested to see another crime series from the same era, though one with a completely different tone to that one. Set during the Meiji era, the series is historical, and as such every location and set is something made to be on the screen, and the films look fantastic because of this. The films are visually stunning, and whilst each of the three directors for these films have their own particular styles and signatures they all work together well, and create a visually interesting trio of films.
Junko Fuji is the biggest draw to these films however, and the actress is hugely impressive here. She plays Oryū as a somewhat aloof character at times. She's hard to read, with little to no emotion on her face for the most part, a trait that a wandering gambler would need. However, there are other times when you can see the emotions peeking through, where her stoic mask begins to crack and you can see the pain and depth of emotions underneath. Fuji is phenomenal in these three movies, and it's easy to see how she was able to headline a series of eight films. She's beautiful and talented in equal measure, and there are a number of scenes here that prove she has the chops to be both a brutal action star and the headliner for more serious movies. It's a shame that this series ended with her retirement from acting, as you can really see that she'd go on to become one of the best actresses in Japan if she'd have continued on; and that it's like this series would have had a lot more than eight films.
The new release from Eureka offers new audio commentary tracks on each of the films with film experts and historians that offer unique insight into the films and their place in Japanese film history. Each of them prove to be interesting, and it's clear that the people involved, Chris Poggiali, Mike Leeder, Arne Venema, and Tom Mes, are all knowledgeable on the subject. There's also a brand new interview with Asian film expert Tony Rayns, who talks about the films in a general sense, as well as going into further detail on the third films director Tai Kato. There is also the accompanying booklet, which features some informative new writing.
Overall, this is a very fine set that can either be a fantastic introduction to this series for new fans like myself, or a great way of watching a trio of old favourites. The set makes a great addition to any Asian film collection, and will hopefully be the first of the series released as there are still five more movies to go.
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