MesmeroWatch list, 0 saved

Movie
Poster for The Beast to Die

The Beast to Die

1980 · 118 min

A cold, jittery descent into a war correspondent's unraveling, watching violence spread through Tokyo like a fever.

Directed by
Tōru Murakawa
Genres
Action, Crime, Thriller
Starring
Yūsaku Matsuda, Asami Kobayashi, Hideo Murota
Overview
A Nietzschean journalist who covered the Vietnam War, Lebanese Civil War and other conflicts becomes mentally unstable and goes on a spree of robbery and murder.

Your rating is saved. See your suggestions, or find titles like this one below.

Rate it, and Mesmero finds titles that feel like it. You do not need an account.

Search YouTube for a trailer

In the UKNo streaming, rental or purchase options known.
Directed by
Tōru Murakawa
Genres
Action, Crime, Thriller
Starring
Yūsaku Matsuda, Asami Kobayashi, Hideo Murota
In your watch list

How it feels

Written by AI. It can be wrong.

Tone
  • darkstrength 3 of 3
  • bleakstrength 2 of 3
  • tensestrength 2 of 3
  • eeriestrength 2 of 3
Pacing
measured, 2 of 4, from slow-burn to relentless
Attention
engaged, 3 of 4, from background-friendly to demanding
Themes
  • madness
  • violence
  • crime
  • obsession
  • isolation
Places
  • big city
Era
contemporary
Audience
adult
Form
None
Content intensity
  • Gore mild
  • Language mild
  • Violence strong
  • Sex mild
All scales, 0 to 10
Scales, 0 to 10
ScaleValue0 to 10
Action6
Horror4
Humour1
Realism7
Romance1
Tension7
Darkness8
Complexity6
Emotional weight7

More like this

Titles like The Beast to Die

Movie

Taxi Driver

1976

A slow, unsettling descent into a lonely mind, with gritty city streets and a constant sense of dread.

Dark, bleak · about madness and violence

Via
  • dark
  • bleak
  • madness
  • violence
Pacing
slow-burn
Attention
engaged
Runtime
114 min
Details
Taxi DriverHidden from your suggestions.
Movie

Mad Dog

1980

A cold, methodical police procedural that keeps you uneasy, watching ordinary crowds become hunting grounds for a quiet, unpredictable killer.

Dark, bleak · about madness and violence

Via
  • dark
  • bleak
  • madness
  • violence
Pacing
measured
Attention
engaged
Runtime
94 min
Details
Mad DogHidden from your suggestions.
Movie

Heat

1995

A cool, controlled crime epic that builds tension through meticulous detail and quiet character moments, culminating in explosive set pieces and a haunting sense of inevitability.

Dark, tense · about crime and obsession

Via
  • dark
  • tense
  • crime
  • obsession
Pacing
measured
Attention
demanding
Runtime
170 min
Details
HeatHidden from your suggestions.
Movie

The Debt Collector

2026

A somber, bruising descent into a violent underworld, where every fight carries the weight of past sins and a ticking clock.

Dark, tense · about violence

Via
  • dark
  • tense
  • violence
Pacing
measured
Attention
engaged
Runtime
134 min
Details
The Debt CollectorHidden from your suggestions.
TV series

Banana Fish

2018

A stylish, bruising crime thriller that keeps you gripped while quietly breaking your heart.

Dark, bleak · about crime

Via
  • dark
  • bleak
  • crime
Pacing
brisk
Attention
engaged
Seasons
1
Details
Banana FishHidden from your suggestions.
Movie

Joker

2019

A slow, suffocating descent into madness that unsettles and provokes, anchored by a mesmerizing performance.

Dark, bleak · about madness and violence

Via
  • dark
  • bleak
  • madness
  • violence
Pacing
slow-burn
Attention
demanding
Runtime
122 min
Details
JokerHidden from your suggestions.
Movie

A Pool Without Water

1982

A slow, unsettling descent into obsession and violence, cold and clinical in its gaze.

Dark, bleak · about madness and violence

Via
  • dark
  • bleak
  • madness
  • violence
Pacing
slow-burn
Attention
demanding
Runtime
103 min
Details
A Pool Without WaterHidden from your suggestions.
Movie

The Chaser

2008

A grim, breathless chase through rain-soaked streets that leaves you tense, sickened and quietly devastated.}<​/think>{.

Dark, bleak · about violence and crime

Via
  • dark
  • bleak
  • violence
  • crime
Pacing
relentless
Attention
demanding
Runtime
125 min
Details
The ChaserHidden from your suggestions.
Movie

Pornostar

1998

A cold, detached plunge into Tokyo's underworld, following an unpredictable killer with unsettling calm and sudden violence.

Dark, bleak · about madness and violence

Via
  • dark
  • bleak
  • madness
  • violence
Pacing
measured
Attention
engaged
Runtime
98 min
Details
PornostarHidden from your suggestions.
Movie

Bullet Ballet

1998

A grim, hypnotic plunge into urban alienation and self-destruction, shot in stark black and white with an unrelenting sense of dread.

Dark, bleak · about violence and obsession

Via
  • dark
  • bleak
  • violence
  • obsession
Pacing
slow-burn
Attention
demanding
Runtime
87 min
Details
Bullet BalletHidden from your suggestions.
Movie

Focus

2001

A tense, gritty descent into danger as curiosity curdles into dread and the streets close in.

Dark, tense · about violence and crime

Via
  • dark
  • tense
  • violence
  • crime
Pacing
measured
Attention
engaged
Runtime
97 min
Details
FocusHidden from your suggestions.
Movie

The Resurrection of the Golden Wolf

1979

A slow-burning, tense crime thriller that feels like a dark double life unraveling, with a measured pace and a cynical edge.

Same director: Tōru Murakawa · Dark, tense · about crime

Also
Same director: Tōru Murakawa
Via
  • dark
  • tense
  • crime
Pacing
measured
Attention
engaged
Runtime
131 min
Details
The Resurrection of the Golden WolfHidden from your suggestions.

Where to watch in the UK

No UK streaming, rental or purchase options are known.

Streaming data from JustWatch.TMDB

Details

Genres
action, crime, thriller
Directed by
Tōru Murakawa
Written by
Shōichi Maruyama
Starring
Yūsaku Matsuda, Asami Kobayashi, Hideo Murota, Rikiya Yasuoka, Yoshirō Aoki, Kai Ato, Eimei Esumi, Hirokazu Inoue
Music
Akihiko Takashima
Cinematography
Seizō Sengen
Runtime
118 min
Country
Japan
Languages
Japanese

TMDBIMDbLetterboxdWikipediaWikidata