Noir, check. French New Wave, check. Spaghetti western, check. Yakuza, check. Rival bad #sses taking pot shots at each other. A Japanese femme fatale. Double crosses. Loyalty. An epic stand-off. Holy smokes this movie was fun.

CHIPMUNK. The lead actor looks like a chipmunk. It needs too be said because that's all you see initially. Apparently it was a result of cheek surgery.Once you get past that this movie is a little treat. A Noir/Yakuza/Spaghetti Western mash-up that actually works. Like "The Killers" we are in the company of a two-man hit team. With a tricked-out car complete with a massive two-way radio they are much in demand from the Yakuza. Then the job goes wrong and it's time to get out of town. However there's a gal at the motel who complicates matters.The music is a combination of cool jazz (which could be in a contemporary Caine movie ) and a touch of the Morricones for the cowboy-like action sequences. It shouldn't work but it is really effective.

A Colt is My Passport (one of the most bad-ass titles ever?), starring Jo Shishido without his sunglasses, is the final, and definitely the best movie from the Nikkatsu Noir Eclipse box-set. It's directed by Takashi Nomura, by far the most obscure director on the set. Aside from this film, his only somewhat-not-that-obscure film is the Eastern- Western Fast-Draw-Guy (1961), which also starred Shishido and earned him the nickname Joe the Ace. As much as I'd like to see a spaghetti western made in Japan, it's unfortunately too obscure to be found.This movie, however, has a Morricone-like soundtrack that sounds like it should accompany a spaghetti western instead, with all the whistles and gunshots and everything that goes with it. But what's really surprising is that this music fits A Colt is My Passport perfectly, especially its final scene.Unfortunately, most of the plot is nothing to write home about, as the cool beginning and the orgasmically epic ending are simply too good for the middle portion of the film. The plot isn't really handled in an interesting way, and the token female character here is basically pointless (really, what purpose did she serve to the plot again?). So as I said, this film has to be seen specifically for the well-shot intro which shows the mob boss being assassinated, and the ending. Oh God, that ending. It's flawless. One of the best movie endings I've ever seen. Just... Holy sh*t. Those final 15 minutes more than make up for the cluelessness of the majority of the storyline.What makes the visuals of this film way better than the other ones from the same set is that it's not simply a copy of American noir photography. Nomura's movie is mostly bright grey and taking place during the day, with cool contemporary architecture and memorable set- pieces, like the tavern window that looks like a rifle scope frame. Technically, it's a superb film, and the final fifteen minutes are brilliant, but sadly the middle portion of the plot loses itself a little.

Jô Shishido, Chitose Kobayashi and Jerry Fujio star in this impressive fusion of styles. The film is a Japanese film noir movie with strong overtones of an Italian spaghetti western! Talk about an unusual combination--but it really worked well.Jô Shishido is a top assassin (like he was in "Branded to Kill") that has been recruited by the mob to kill a rival mobster. Watching Jô setting up and executing this hit was pretty exciting--like watching a master at his craft. However, in a twist, after completing the job, the son of the now-dead mob boss decides on a truce with the rival mob--and to cement the merger, the son demands the death of the assassin...as well as his assistant (Jerry). Suddenly two mobs are out to kill them and it looks as if there's absolutely nothing they can do to stop this. Along the way, the duo meet up with a young lady (Chitose)--a woman whose fiancé was killed by the same mobsters trying to kill Jô and Jerry. She befriends them and tries to help them...it it's possible. All this leads to one of the best film noir/action movie endings I've seen in a long time when it's just Jô and a team of dirt-bags out for his head.The film is very stylish and well made throughout. I wasn't the least surprised to see Jô Shishito in the film, as he made a ton of gangster films during this era. However, people not familiar with him might be a bit surprised, as he looks a bit like a chipmunk--thanks to cheek implants intended to make him look 'distinctive'. I could say more about this excellent film but won't, as it might tend to ruin the suspense--and the ending is very, very suspenseful.