Only Available from the Umbrella webstore, the SHADOW WARS Collector’s Edition includes:
- 48-page book of behind-the-scenes material and essays by Brian Streussnig, Mark Schilling and David Michael Brown
- Custom illustration rigid case by Colin Murdoch
- 8 replica lobby cards
- X2 A3 reversible posters featuring original art
- Limited edition numbered release
From the master of postwar chaos comes a blistering triptych of crime, corruption, and collapse.
After the success of Battles Without Honor and Humanity (1973–74), Fukasaku continued to refine his “jitsuroku” (true record) approach; a semi-documentary style of yakuza film inspired by real events, police files, and newspaper reportage.
These three titles, COPS VS THUGS, CROSS THE RUBICON!, and HOKURIKU PROXY WAR, all extend that gritty realism: handheld camerawork, frenetic editing, overlapping dialogue, and moral murk. They turn away from romanticized gangsters toward a chaotic, corrupt Japan of the 1960s-70s where cops, crooks, and politicians are virtually indistinguishable.
In COPS VS THUGS (KENKEI TAI SOSHIKI BORYOKU), CROSS THE RUBICON! (SHIKINGEN GÔDATSU), and HOKURIKU PROXY WAR (HOKURIKU DAIRI SENSÔ), director Kinji Fukasaku tears away the illusion of honor to expose a Japan where the cops are as dirty as the gangsters and the only loyalty left is to survival itself.
Only Available from the Umbrella webstore, the SHADOW WARS Collector’s Edition includes:
- 48-page book of behind-the-scenes material and essays by Brian Streussnig, Mark Schilling and David Michael Brown
- Custom illustration rigid case by Colin Murdoch
- 8 replica lobby cards
- X2 A3 reversible posters featuring original art
- Limited edition numbered release
COPS VS THUGS
CROSS THE RUBICON!
HOKURIKU PROXY WAR
No. of discs: 3
Running time: 100, 91, 98
Audio format: 2.0 Mono DTS-HD MA
Format: 1080P
Colour: COLOUR
Languages: Japanese
Aspect ratio: 16:9
Image ratio: 2.35:1
Subtitles: English
Year of Production: 1975, 1975, 1977
Release Date: 08 April 2026