I love yakuza movies. Robert Mitchum and Takakura Ken, the man who never smiles, in the 1974 flick The Yakuza; ‘Beat’ Takeshi Kitano’s deadpan outings, from Violent Cop to Hana-bi; anything by Takashi Miike. But before we go any further, let’s get the word right, shall we? Ya-ku-za, not ya-koo-za or any other mis-stressed, vowel-stretched, English version of it. Ya-ku-za, with equal stress on three short syllables, no inflection. Trust me: saying ya-koo-za to a yakuza is not a good idea. 

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