Set in the expansive Japanese community of Sao Paulo in Brazil - the largest Japanese diaspora in the world - YAKUZA PRINCESS follows Akemi (MASUMI), an orphan who discovers she is the heiress to half of the Yakuza crime syndicate. Forging an uneasy alliance with an amnesiac stranger (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) who believes an ancient sword binds their two fates, Akemi must unleash war against the other half of the syndicate who wants her dead.... (Full plot summary below)
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Set in the expansive Japanese community of Sao Paulo in Brazil - the largest Japanese diaspora in the world - YAKUZA PRINCESS follows Akemi (MASUMI), an orphan who discovers she is the heiress to half of the Yakuza crime syndicate. Forging an uneasy alliance with an amnesiac stranger (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) who believes an ancient sword binds their two fates, Akemi must unleash war against the other half of the syndicate who wants her dead.
Leave your thoughts about Yakuza Princess.
| The Film StageJared MobarakThe whole is not without flaws and eventually falls prey to the “this was really an origin story” bid for sequels, but it is enjoyable. |
| The GuardianMike McCahillIt’s been compiled with enthusiasm, flashes of skill, and a certain devil-may-care cheek – an infusion of newish blood for a Brazilian film industry that’s been badly drained in recent years. |
| VarietyRichard KuipersWhile it generally lacks dramatic oomph and the story is confusing at times, Yakuza Princess delivers plenty of visual excitement. |
| Original-CinThom ErnstYakuza Princess is a passable actioner with a few memorable scenes, the highlight of which is a fight in a karaoke bar (yes, MASUMI gets the chance to sing). But it’s unable to get beyond a level of mediocrity, and MASUMI’s performance fails to resonate with the sufficient conviction required of her role. |
| Austin ChronicleRichard WhittakerThe further director Vicente Amorim pulls out, the more exciting the film becomes; but he never really takes advantage of the supernatural overtones that swim around the edges, or the unique cultural background of Brazil's massive Japanese diaspora. |
| The A.V. ClubKatie RifeAt 112 minutes, this film is way too long for the amount of story contained within—which, again, would be a forgivable offense, had Amorim filled the extra time with something entertaining. Instead, all we get is inertia, as we wait with the main character for her fate to reveal itself. |
| Movie NationRoger MooreSure, you had me at Yakuza Princess. But was there ever a more ponderous gangland saga set in the Japanese mafia than this? |
| IndieWireCarlos AguilarAs an intellectually empty piece of genre cinema, “Yakuza Princess” can’t even sit alongside movies that offer similarly obtuse ideas but that gain some favor through impressive spectacle. |
| The New York TimesGlenn KennyThe cynical pro forma luridness Yakuza Princess grinds out suggests that sensationalist cinema, or at least its most ostensibly mainstream iteration, is currently depleted of resources. |
| Slant MagazineKeith WatsonThis grimly self-serious tale of violent destiny is consistently drowned out by Vicente Amorim’s overreaching visual style. |
