Let us immediately address two doubts that inevitably arise in the face of Tokyo Vice (released in USA on HBO Max on April 7, there is still no Italian date): first of all, no, it has nothing to do with the assonant Miamidespite Michael Mann directing the pilot and you are among the executive producers. The series is instead an adaptation of the namesake memoir published in 2009 by Jake Adelstein, an American who became a crime reporter in Japan. Secondly, yes, the two main characters are American, as well as most of the production, despite the fact that the series is set in Japan and we only talk about Japan.
Nevertheless Tokyo Vice does not expire in orientalism, does not romanticize, does not do virtual tourism: the protagonists Jake (Ansel Elgort, who was perhaps not the best possible choice) and Samantha (Rachel Keller), US citizens expatriates in Tokyo, act as mediators for the Western public , but both speak perfect Japanese, move naturally through the alleys and clubs of the city, are surrounded by diverse, three-dimensional and credible characters, among which certainly stands out the very serious and charismatic detective Hiroto (Ken Watanabe). When a Yakuza gangster turns out to be a die-hard Backstreet Boys fan, with a very specific opinion on the meaning of the lyrics of I want it that waywe seem to perceive the effectiveness of a representation based on direct experience.
Set in 1999, Tokyo Vice has at its center the journalistic investigation carried out by Jake, the first gaijin (foreigner) hired by a large Japanese newspaper, very ambitious and a bit idealistic, totally absorbed in the mission of getting noticed in the editorial office. The eight episodes are entrusted to five different directors, each of which gives a personal style, even if Mann’s is probably the best: few dialogues, a very mobile camera that builds large ensembles moving with great style from a detail to the other.
Overall, the series manages to be both an interesting analysis of the characters and the environment in which they live, and an exciting crime on the yakuza with a good dose of action. There are not so many like that.
