| Ryuzo and the Seven Henchmen | |
| Native Name: | 龍三と七人の子分たち |
| Director: | Takeshi Kitano |
| Producer: | Takio Yoshida Masayuki Mori |
| Narrators: | --> |
| Music: | Keiichi Suzuki |
| Cinematography: | Katsumi Yanagijima |
| Editing: | Takeshi Kitano Yoshinori Ota |
| Studio: | Office Kitano |
| Production Companies: | --> |
| Distributors: | --> |
| Runtime: | 125 minutes |
| Country: | Japan |
| Language: | Japanese |
| Gross: | + (Japan) |
, also known as Ryuzo 7, is a 2015 Japanese action comedy film directed by Takeshi Kitano. It was released on April 25, 2015.[1]
Ryuzo (Tatsuya Fuji) is a retired yakuza gangster who lives a quiet unassuming life with his salaryman son, Ryuhei (Masanobu Katsumura). Still in contact with his former lieutenant, Masa (Masaomi Kondō), Ryuzo maintains his short temper with their regular get-togethers. One day, the old gangster receives a call from an impostor pretending to be his son asking for ¥5 million. Ryūzō sees through the trick and learns from police detective Murakami (Beat Takeshi) that a member from the Keihin Rengo gang is responsible. Re-uniting his seven former henchmen to strike back, Ryūzō learns that they have all grown weak with their old age. The elderly yakuza members soon learn that they must overcome their weaknesses if they are to prove to be a match against the younger Keihin Rengo.
The film earned on its opening weekend in Japan.[2] By May 17, the film had grossed over .[3] In a review for The Japan Times, Mark Schilling applauded Tatsuya Fuji for his performance of Ryuzo, stating, "Though looking every one of his 74 real-life years, Fuji brings a volatile energy to proceedings that would otherwise be merely absurd... when he starts raging against the dying of the light, look out for flying debris — and prepare to laugh."[4]