“Battles Without Honor and Humanity” / 「仁義なき戦い」, Set of Two Original Japanese Movie Posters 1973–1974 — Original Film & Police Tactics — Speed Poster Format — S296 & S295

This listing is for an exceptional set of two original Japanese speed posters produced for the first-release campaigns of Kinji Fukasaku’s Battles Without Honor and Humanity in 1973 and Battles Without Honor and Humanity: Police Tactics in 1974.

The set brings together two complementary designs from Toei’s landmark Japanese crime-film series:

Poster A — Battles Without Honor and Humanity: fallen figure and character portrait montage — Reference S296
Poster B — Police Tactics: revolver and ensemble portrait montage — Reference S295

Together, the posters capture the series’ confrontational visual language: fragmented photography, forceful brush lettering, stark colour contrasts and imagery of violence and betrayal.

Both are original Japanese theatrical printings from their respective release campaigns, presented in the distinctive long, narrow speed poster format.

Film background

Released in 1973, Battles Without Honor and Humanity follows Shōzō Hirono, played by Bunta Sugawara, as he becomes involved in organised crime amid the disorder of post-war Hiroshima Prefecture.

Based on Kōichi Iiboshi’s accounts drawing upon the memoirs of former yakuza Kōzō Minō, the film presents a world of unstable alliances, personal ambition and repeated betrayal. Its screenplay was written by Kazuo Kasahara, with direction by Kinji Fukasaku.

Fukasaku’s restless camerawork, abrupt violence and documentary-like presentation challenged the romantic image of the honourable gangster. The film established the central characters and conflicts of a series that became a defining achievement of Japanese crime cinema.

Released in 1974, Police Tactics is the fourth instalment. It follows the escalation of gang conflict as public outrage and police intervention place the criminal organisations under mounting pressure. Alongside Sugawara, its ensemble includes Akira Kobayashi, Tatsuo Umemiya, Nobuo Kaneko, and Kunie Tanaka.

Both films were distributed by Toei, whose emblem appears on the posters.

The Japanese poster campaigns

These two designs advertise separate films within the same continuing series.

The 1973 poster introduces the original film through a sprawling fallen figure, pinned photographic portraits and a crowded background of faces. The 1974 poster intensifies this visual approach with torn-paper edges, an oversized revolver and an unexpected wildlife photograph.

Their shared use of collage, aggressive typography and compressed vertical space gives the pair a strong visual relationship. The designs translate the films’ fractured loyalties and sudden violence into striking theatrical advertising.

Displayed together, they offer a compelling comparison of the publicity for the series’ first and fourth entries.

Poster A — Battles Without Honor and Humanity: fallen figure and character portrait montage — S296

The first design is dominated by a large monochrome figure sprawled diagonally across the sheet, reproduced with a pronounced halftone texture.

Cropped legs cross the upper edge, while the fallen figure stretches through the centre towards the lower section. These opposing diagonals create an unsettled composition with little sense of stability.

Four small character portraits appear down the left side, presented as photographic prints held in place by illustrated drawing pins. Their arrangement suggests a collection of identities assembled for scrutiny, reinforcing the film’s network of competing personalities and loyalties.

The lower background combines ochre, orange-red and white, filled with a dense montage of faces. Across it, the title:

「仁義なき戦い」

appears in enormous dark navy brush lettering.

The prominent red vertical copy reads:

「暗殺、裏切り、報復…… 残虐な死闘の日々の中で 怒り、苦悩する男たち！」

“Assassination, betrayal, retaliation… Men raging and suffering through days of savage, deadly conflict!”

Smaller black text refers to the real-world accounts behind the film, connecting its dramatic imagery to the campaign’s emphasis on recorded underworld history.

The result is a forceful design whose photographic textures, crowded faces and sweeping calligraphy reflect the original film’s abrasive energy.

Reference: S296.

Poster B — Police Tactics: revolver and ensemble portrait montage — S295

The second design opens with a red-brown photograph of a distressed man beside a wooden post, his mouth open and a blade visible nearby.

An irregular torn-paper border separates this scene from a band of monochrome character portraits below. Faces overlap and emerge from jagged edges, creating the impression of a fragmented photographic dossier.

Across the centre sits a particularly distinctive image: hyenas gathered around a fallen animal. This wildlife photograph gives literal visual form to the poster’s language of predation and survival.

Below it, an enormous revolver with its cylinder swung open cuts diagonally across the composition. A hand holding cartridges appears alongside the weapon, making the act of loading it a central part of the design.

The red vertical headline reads:

「弱肉強食の凄惨なクライマックス」

“A gruesome climax in a world where the strong prey on the weak.”

The series title:

「仁義なき戦い」

fills the lower right in bold red brush calligraphy.

Beside it, the subtitle:

「頂上作戦」

appears in pale characters within a tall black panel. This is the fourth film, internationally known as Police Tactics.

The combination of distressed figures, predatory animals and the oversized firearm makes this an especially confrontational example of Toei’s 1970s crime-film advertising.

Reference: S295.

Authenticity

The two examples offered here are original Japanese speed posters produced for the films’ respective first-release theatrical campaigns:

Battles Without Honor and Humanity — 1973
Battles Without Honor and Humanity: Police Tactics — 1974

They are not reproductions or decorative reprints.

Release and format note

Both posters use the long, narrow Japanese speed poster format, measuring approximately:

S296 — 26 × 73 cm
S295 — 26 × 75 cm

This format allows a succession of portraits, scenes and promotional text to unfold vertically, giving both compositions a different visual rhythm from a conventional B2 sheet.

The set comprises:

Poster A — Original film, fallen figure and character portraits — S296
Poster B — Police Tactics, revolver and ensemble montage — S295

Bringing these two original release designs together offers an appealing opportunity for collectors of Kinji Fukasaku, Bunta Sugawara, Toei, Japanese yakuza cinema and 1970s poster design.

Condition

Both posters are in excellent+ condition.

They retain strong colour, clear photographic imagery and bold, legible typography. Horizontal fold lines, light handling creases and gentle paper undulations are visible, particularly on the reverses.

Both present extremely well, with their complementary compositions making an impressive paired display.

Once framed, these posters will display excellently.

Please review the photographs carefully, including the reverses, as they show the exact two posters included in this listing.

This listing includes:

One original 1973 Japanese Battles Without Honor and Humanity speed poster — S296
One original 1974 Japanese Police Tactics speed poster — S295

They are now over 53 and 52 years old, respectively.

They are not reproductions or reprints.

Certificates of Authenticity included.