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Elegant Beast

Original title: Shitoyaka na kedamono / The Graceful Brute
1962 · 1 h 36 min
Directed by Yuzo Kawashima · Japan · Japanese Golden Age
DramaCrime

Where to watch in the United States: Stream: Night Flight Plus, OVID, Eternal Family · Free: Hoopla, Darkroom, Plex, Plex Channel, Tubi TV · Rent: Amazon Video, Fandango At Home · Buy: Amazon Video, Fandango At Home. Streaming data from JustWatch via TMDB; availability changes.

Cast

Ayako Wakao Eiji Funakoshi Yûko Hamada Hideo Takamatsu Manamitsu Kawabata Yūnosuke Itō

Credits

Written by: Kaneto Shindō

Plot

A greedy, materialistic family attempts to cover-up the embezzlement committed by the son while keeping their other schemes active. They discover there are other, equally conniving players involved.

Sinekatalog’s take

A savage, cynical black comedy in which a family of schemers prey on one another in a cramped apartment. The pace is fast, the look is stylised and the satire of greed is merciless. Excellent for fans of sharp, caustic postwar Japanese cinema.Sinekatalog’s own editorial review – not a user or critic quote.

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Ratings

IMDb: 7.4 / 10 (626 votes)
IMDb rating and vote count from the IMDb ratings dataset (October 2026). Scores change over time.

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