Delinquent Boss: Wolves of the City

1969 1h 29m JA

🤯

8.5

MASTERPIECE

★8.5TMDB · 2

ActionCrime

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Kosaka Hiroshi is a small time swindler and the boss of a motorcycle gang in Shinjuku. Living only to make money, he never made the big time until he gets involved with a Yakuza's daughter. But when he gets involved in a scheme to blackmail a Yakuza gang and a land developer, he realizes he's gone way over his head…

“Some stories are better left unspoiled.”

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Cast

Tatsuo Umemiya
Hiroshi Kosaka
Bunta Sugawara
Sonny Chiba
Mitsuo Fujiki
Hayato Tani
Shigeru Katsumi
Tamami Natsu
Yuki
Tōru Yuri
Tonpei Hidari
Bacchiri

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Yukio Noda
Writers: Eimei Yamamoto, Isao Matsumoto, Tarō Bonten
Languages: Japanese
Countries: Japan

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

89 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

57 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

CINEMA

Did you know

Part of the "Wolves of the City Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Lean credit list — fewer than 30 people officially credited.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Yukio Noda, shot by Yoshikazu Yamasawa. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Masao Yagi. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Fumio Soda shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Tatsuo Umemiya and Bunta Sugawara and Sonny Chiba carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Yukio Noda directs. Yoshikazu Yamasawa behind the camera. Masao Yagi scores. Fumio Soda cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in Japan. Dialogue in Japanese.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

189 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.
257 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
3Part of the "Wolves of the City Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.
4Lean credit list — fewer than 30 people officially credited.
5Directed by Yukio Noda, shot by Yoshikazu Yamasawa. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
6Original score by Masao Yagi. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
7Editor Fumio Soda shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
8Tatsuo Umemiya and Bunta Sugawara and Sonny Chiba carry the top of the cast.
9IMDB entry: tt0204333 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
10Only 2 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

The technical file

Cinematography: Yoshikazu Yamasawa
Original score: Masao Yagi
Editing: Fumio Soda
Production design: Shinichi Eno
Runtime: 89 min · 1h 29m
Status: Released
Original language: JA
IMDB: Delinquent Boss: Wolves of the City (1969)

Part of

Wolves of the City Collection

Also known as the Wolves of the City series, Tatsuo Umemiya starred as the leader of a motorcycle youth gang called the Capones in seventeen between 1968 and 1974.