Battles Without Honor and Humanity: Deadly Fight in Hiroshima

Set in postwar Hiroshima, this crime drama follows Shoji Yamanaka, a young man who has been beaten and cast out by gamblers, police and gangsters alike. He finds a place in the Muraoka family, working as a hitman for its boss, and falls for the boss's niece, Yasuko. His position grows complicated, while the ambitions of Katsutoshi Otomo, the volatile son of an allied boss, push the yakuza of the city toward open conflict and drag Shozo Hirono and others into fresh bloodshed.

Kinji Fukasaku directed, with a screenplay by Kazuo Kasahara. The film is the sixth of the sixteen features Fukasaku directed in chronological order, arriving after Tora! Tora! Tora! and before Battles Without Honor and Humanity. Bunta Sugawara plays Hirono, Kinya Kitaoji plays Yamanaka, Meiko Kaji plays Yasuko, and Sonny Chiba plays Otomo, within a credited cast of forty-two. It is the second entry in the yakuza series that began with Battles Without Honor and Humanity.

Made by Toei Company and running 99 minutes, the film has held up with audiences: on IMDb it sits at 7.4/10 from around 2,200 votes, and on TMDB at 7.3/10 from roughly 74 votes, a consistent showing across both.