Sword owned by Takakura Ken of ‘The Yakuza’ movie, 1974. Directed by Sidney Pollack and also starring Robert Mitchum. Currently on display at Meiji Jingu’s Treasure Museum until Nov 16. It was gifted by Ken san to the NBSK and is housed at the Sakakimachi Museum of Tetsu in Nagano prefecture. | Paul Martin

高倉健與日本「極道」電影 Ken Takakura and “Yakuza” Films in Japan 「極道」電影特指以黑幫為題材的日本電影。「極道」(gokudo) 是日語中黑幫的統稱，但倘若談到此類型的電影，其實「ヤクザ」(yakuza) 才是日本人常用的叫法。 "Yakuza" is a term that refers specifically to Japanese gangsters. Like Hong Kong's gangster films, Yakuza films have been a prominent genre in Japanese cinema for decades. 日本黑幫中人常以「仁俠」自居，以「仁義」為座右銘，也有人用「仁俠電影」的叫法。而高倉健在《日本俠客傳》、《昭和殘俠傳》、《網走番外地》三大系列中，以其獨特的硬漢氣質，成功奠定了日本極道中人「仁俠」的螢幕形象，是極道電影當之無愧的代表性人物。 Japanese gangsters often refer themselves as "Ninkyo" - heros who pro