Violent Panic: The Big Crash (1976)

As fast and lethal as the banker robbers it depicts

One of Kinji Fukasaku's lighter and more comedic works, Violent Panic: The Big Crash is an unrelenting and fast-paced slice of vehicular mayhem, one that feels right at home in his crime-ridden filmography. It's classic Fukasaku from start to finish, just dropping the Yakuza subgenre that often defined his works. Despite the departure from the said genre and the film being a bit of a mess tonally in the first half, Fukasaku still creates a gripping world of slick, charismatic characters. It's a film filled with brutal, quick-to-the-trigger, cigarette-breathing bank robbers, and Tsunehiko Watase is a star among them. He walks the line between enthralling and too ruthless well as he robs his way through Japan. The characters in the second act are often one-note or clash with the gritty crime world Fukasaku paints, but few diminish from the atmosphere of danger throughout the narrative thanks to Fukasaku's trademark urgent and frantic camerawork being out in full force, from its thrilling bank robberies to its outstanding car chases, he puts the audience square within the chaos. From the mix of funky grooves to slow spaghetti western ballads on the soundtrack, Violent Panic: The Big Crash furthers Fukasau's stylish legacy with one hell of an entertaining ride, as fast and lethal as the banker robbers it depicts.

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