Kiyoshi Kurosawa is coming off a rough patch after controversies around SWEET HOME in 1989 and the financial failure of THE GUARD FROM UNDERGROUND in 1992, but after retreating into television work he’s about to be given a new lifeline in the 90s: V-CINEMA! This straight-to-VHS trend focusing on genre fare ended up being a training ground for a number of favorite directors and Kurosawa dives right in, first with the extremely silly (but quite fun) crime-comedy YAKUZA TAXI, and continuing with the cycling drama (adapted from a Yasuhito Yamamoto manga) MEN OF RAGE. On this episode of SERPENT’S PATH we look at everything Kurosawa was up to, how he ended up on these two films, and detail some of our own frustrations watching them. ENJOY!
