The Warped Ones

Koreyoshi Kurahara's 1960 Japanese film follows a young offender released from reform school. As soon as he is out, Akira finds the journalist who had him put away and directs his anger first at the man's girlfriend; the narrative follows what comes next without imposing any moral frame. The film presents the Japanese youth of the period not as a problem but as an energy. Jazz sets the rhythm; the camera is handheld, the frames tilted and the editing deliberately irregular. The film does not excuse what the character does, but neither does it punish him, which was unusual against the censorship and moral expectation of the time. Tamio Kawachi leads and the performance is almost entirely physical. Who it's for: those who like the Japanese new wave and sixties youth cinema. Who it's not for: viewers troubled by scenes of sexual violence; the film shows this early and does not confront its consequences.