American Yakuza (1993): cast, story & where to watch

Released in 1993, American Yakuza is a crime film directed by Frank A. Cappello, running about 96 minutes. “The mob has a new enemy.” — that tagline sets the tone.

What it’s about. When Nick Davis leaves prison after one year in solitaire, he is hired to operate forklift in a warehouse in the harbor owned by the Japanese Yakuza patriarch Isshin Tendo. The place is assaulted by the Italian Mafia leaded by Dino Campanela and Nick rescues and saves the life of Shuji Sawamoto, who is the representative of Yakuza interests in America. Shuji hires Nick to work for Yakuza and becomes his godfather in the family after his oath to join Yakuza. However, Nick is a lonely FBI undercover agent assigned to penetrate in the criminal organization. When the FBI discovers that Campanela is organizing a massive attack to destroy the Yakuza, Nick's boss Littman calls off the operation to leave the dirty work to the Italian Mafia. But the connection of Nick with Shuji and his goddaughter Yuko forces him to help his Japanese family.

Who’s in it. American Yakuza stars Viggo Mortensen as Nick Davis / David Brandt, Ryo Ishibashi as Shuji Sawamoto, Michael Nouri as Dino Campanela and Franklyn Ajaye as Sam, among others.

How it landed. With an audience score of 5.6/10, American Yakuza has drawn a solid, mixed-to-positive response.

Where to watch. In US you can stream it on fuboTV and rent or buy it from Amazon Video, Apple TV Store and Fandango At Home. See the full, country-by-country breakdown on our where to watch American Yakuza page.

If you liked it. Fans of American Yakuza tend to enjoy The Shawshank Redemption, The Godfather, The Godfather Part II and The Dark Knight.