In the early 1990s, Tai "Steelhead" (played by Jackie Chan) is a tractor mechanic who illegally enters Japan from China looking for his fiancée, Xiu-Xiu (played by Xu Jinglei). Along with his friend Jie (Daniel Wu), Steelhead goes through the dark side of Japan and picks up all the necessary skills to survive.
While operating as an illegal part of the clean-up crew in the sewers, Steelhead and his fellow workers are noticed by the police and chased. Steelhead saves Detective Kitano (Naoto Takenaka) from drowning during the pursuit, which excites Kitano and he vows to stop chasing Steelhead.
Steelhead meets Xiu-Xiu while he is working in a restaurant; she is now Eguchi's (Masaya Kato) girlfriend, the yakuza boss. Steelhead becomes a heavy drinker after this meeting but soon decides to obtain a Japanese passport. His Chinese friends assist him in starting a money laundering business, and he deliberately excludes Jie, who is too gentle, from this business.
Gao , the Taiwanese triad boss, finds out that his pachinko machines were being tampered with by Steelhead's people causing a conflict. Jie is captured and severely beaten by Gao. Steelhead attacks Gao's establishment with the intention of taking revenge but accidentally discovers a plan to kill Eguchi, so he saves him, and they strike a deal giving Eguchi a job in the yakuza, only if he hands over Gao's territories to Steelhead and obtains a Japanese passport.
Steelhead becomes involved in the yakuza gang wars which escalate into gang wars and war for control of Gao's territories, which Steelhead eventually wins. Despite his efforts to live a decent life, his comrades become corrupted. Detective Kitano warns Steelhead of imminent arrests. Steelhead makes a deal with Kitano wherein he will gather evidence against Eguchi in exchange for the release of his friends.
However, during the final fight, Steelhead tries convincing his brothers to abandon their illegal activities but he gets stabbed in the conflict. The story ends with a tragedy, and this tragic ending is indicative of the cruelty of life in the underworld.
Character Details:
- Tai “Steelhead” (Jackie Chan): Steelhead was a Chinese construction mechanic, living in Japan after coming there through illegal channels while looking for his fiancé. When the story starts, he is clever, desperate, very determined, and his love is the main drive for him. Steelhead’s journey from being a mere oyster shucker to becoming an influential yakuza leader is marked by the fact that he starts to realize what he can do and he stays clean from drugs and also he becomes (symbolic) a path towards his own redemption and liberation as well as for his friend’s.
- Xiu-Xiu/Yuko (Xu Jinglei): Steelhead’s beloved, who is said to be one of the main causes of trouble within the yakuza, is the girl who is living around in a mafia family of bads, a family of Eguchi, incidentally. She and Eguchi are the parents of a girl, name Ayako. The name Yuko, on the one hand, can be interpreted as her assimilation into the new life in Japan where she is now living and the absence of Steelhead who used to be the most important part of her life. On the other hand, it also reflects a complete change in her, for she was once a vibrant and cheerful girl firmly rooted and nurtured by her homeland.
- Jie (Daniel Wu): Jie jumps on Steelhead’s side, who is his partner and together, they get out of the rough part of Japan. Jie is basically just a very good guy and it is quite ironic that he is also a victim of the harsh world that they all have accidentally gotten into.
- Detective Kitano (Naoto Takenaka): One day, Steelhead gets involved in saving a Japanese police officer Kitano. It is evident that Kitano has a very profound internal change after coming into contact with the goodness in Steelhead, who proves to be a much better person than Kitano who initially was his adversary but later on they become friends and together they kill the whole mafia.
- Eguchi (Masaya Kato): At one time when Steelhead saves Eguchi's life, he becomes quite friendly with him and a flirt, crazy about his own life. Eguchi is a mixture of dignity and a justice chaser, engaged in some rather complicated machinations.
- Gao (Jack Kao): He is the leader of the Taiwanese triads and the battle he has with Steelhead initiates a series of bloody events. Gao is a merciless enforcer who reigns in the criminal underworld; he is the embodiment of the dangers posed to Steelhead and the people close to him.
- Lily (Fan Bingbing): A kind-hearted woman who lends a helping hand to Steelhead when he is down and out, handing him some money and later on she plays a role in his life. Through her character, one can see how there still exist some good in this cruel world that Steelhead is a part of.
This synopsis provides a detailed look at the main events and characters of "Shinjuku Incident," highlighting the complexities and tragic elements of the story.
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