Tokyo Tribe

2014 "Let Sion Sono take you on a tour of Tokyo's underbelly for a night of turf wars & rap battles."
6.4| 1h56m| en
Details

In an alternate Japan, territorial street gangs form opposing factions collectively known as the Tokyo Tribes. The simmering tension between them is about to boil over into all-out war.

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Reviews

Kattiera Nana I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.
Zandra The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.
Guillelmina The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.
Caryl It is a whirlwind of delight --- attractive actors, stunning couture, spectacular sets and outrageous parties. It's a feast for the eyes. But what really makes this dramedy work is the acting.
Yashua Kimbrough (jimniexperience) Mixture of Kung-Fu fighting , Hip Hop Musicals , Colorful settings , and Sexy Women
Leofwine_draca TOKYO TRIBE is another quite incredible movie from Japanese cult director Sion Sono, a man whose has overtaken Takashi Miike as that country's supreme director of trashy, anything-goes cinema. I've previously experienced the delights of such films as GUILTY OF ROMANCE and LOVE EXPOSURE among others, but even they didn't prepare me for this high-energy musical that has to be seen to be believed.The story is set in an alternate universe Tokyo, one that is dominated by rival gangs. The tale sees a pair of super-villains teaming up to commit murder, only to find themselves opposed by the rest of the gangs who gather together to combat them. The result is an incredible concoction of martial arts action, sexuality, and generally cool characters doing intensely cool things. I loved every demented minute of it, and that's coming from somebody who doesn't even like rap music. It says something about Sono's efforts that I ended up loving the music here, even if it is just for this movie.
sol- Even more offbeat and outlandish than 'Why Don't You Play in Hell?', this follow-up feature from Sion Sono is a rap musical about feuding gangs, set in contemporary Japan. While unquestionably a bizarre mesh of genres, the project works magnificently thanks to the energy and imagination that Sono brings to every frame. The sets and costumes are a wonder to behold with heavy doses of neon lights, human statue furniture, walls made of red balloons... there is even a gun with a mobile phone built into it and a van with chandeliers attached to the side mirrors! The minimal special effects and spirited choreography are pretty good too and while the violence is nowhere near as brutal or memorable as in 'Play in Hell', it is an experience all the same. Attempting to nut out of finer details of the plot is a little tricky here. There are a heap of key characters, very few of whom are developed in any depth, and side plots including a missing daughter and a mystical quest delivered via hologram crop up without ever being properly resolved. Never to mind, what can be deciphered here is enticing on its own and the film includes some neat messages too regarding how easy it is to pitch gangs against one another and the very petty reasons that some men have for starting (turf or other) wars. There is a fair bit of dark comedy in the mix too and the overall movie is so outrageous and willfully uncanny that its entertainment value is hard to deny as long as one is prepared to forgo the tropes of traditional narratives and indulge in something a little more 'out there'.
capo-365-829602 Shion Sono can, in the case of Love Exposure, make a 4 hour movie feel like a 2 hour movie and in the case of Tokyo Tribe make a two hour movie feel like a four hour movie. A strange showdown in Tokyo between warring crews is a freaking absurd mix between the Warriors, 1970's yakuza flicks, and an entire history of hip hop videos. The beats are tight, the visuals mind-blowing, the whole thing is like a crazy hallucination that is actually closer to way the real world operates than we admit. The set it is filmed on is obviously fake like the rain that hits it, the acting is absurd, the plot simple, but executed however the hell he wants. What is Shion Sono trying to say??? I think everyone that watches Tokyo Tribe at one point has to ask the question they know they shouldn't. I see, hear, and feel this movie. It does drag at times, since they're defiantly rapping almost every line of dialogue. Something about this film makes it the most progressive, subversive, pure cinema yet to be made on such a large scale. It's inaccessible, but mindless. It's mindful and welcoming. Crazy, insane, but completely lucid the entire time. I think it's genius. I think this guy Shion Sono is a genius. Should I admit that again? Oh I guess I already did on his last film.