Kamikaze Taxi
Kamikaze Taxi is a 1995 Japanese action crime film written and directed by Masato Harada.
The film was released in Japan on April 25, 1995 and shown at the 1995 London Film Festival. Actor Mickey Curtis won the 1996 Kinema Junpo Award for best supporting actor for his work in the film.
Premise
Tatsuo, an up-and-coming yakuza gangster, sends his prostitute and girlfriend Tama to service corrupt senator Domon. The politician has a taste for torture and beats her. When Tama protests her treatment, she is killed in front of Tatsuo by crime boss Animaru. Tatsuo seeks revenge for her killing. He and his gang vandalize Domon's house and steal 2 million dollars hidden in his safe. In retaliation, Tatsuo's bosses put a hit out on them. Tatsuo flees in a taxi driven by Peruvian-Japanese Kantake. Kantake has recently returned to Japan after living in South America for decades. He is struggling to cope with poverty and the prejudices of native-born Japanese. As they flee, Tatsuo plans a "kamikaze" mission to kill his bosses and Domon. The relationship between Tatsuo and Kantake unexpectedly deepens as Tatsuo gets closer to his goal.Production
The soundtrack for Kamikaze Taxi was composed by Masahiro Kawasaki. To represent Yakusho's Peruvian-Japanese taxi driver character, director Harada had Kawasaki listen to tapes of Peruvian music to come up with a similar sound. Kawasaki ultimately used Peruvian pipes in the creation of his score.Release
Kamikaze Taxi was released in Japan on April 25, 1995. The film was also shown at the 1995 London Film Festival.Originally intended for the home video market, the film was distributed in that format in a 185 minute cut split into two parts. This was edited down to 169 minutes for the Japanese theatrical release. Kamikaze Taxi was further edited to 140 minutes for its international release.