Japan Synopsis
鬼火
After spending over half his life in prison, ex-hitman Kunihiro is determined to go straight. But the shortcomings of the new gangs mean that he is soon having to call on his old-school yakuza talents. And when he falls for Asako, a beautiful piano player, she unknowingly ignites a fire within Kuni that will immolate everything and everybody around him. Regarded by many as his masterpiece, Onibi has all the hallmarks of a Mochizuki film, with the gangster elements tightly compressed and controlled to allow space in which a subdued romance can bloom. Coming from a background in porno cinema, this master of sexual relations injects a fresh passion and tension into the macho world of the yakuza film.
Titles With Overlapping Themes
Films and series that share thematic tags with Onibi: The Fire Within. Number on each card indicates how many keywords overlap.
Other Titles From GAGA Communications
Drama + Crime in Japan
203 Japan titles in our catalog blend the Drama and Crime genres. Below: the top-rated of them (excluding Onibi: The Fire Within itself).
The 1996–1998 Japan Window
In the crowded 1996-1998 Japan release window, Onibi: The Fire Within sits at #141 of 144. The leaderboard below contextualises its neighbours.
The 1990s Japan Landscape
Catalog density by release year across the 1990s in Japan, 447 titles in total. Highlighted year (yellow) is when Onibi: The Fire Within premiered alongside 38 others.
Position in Catalog
Released alongside 38 other Japan films in 1997.
The 1102nd Japan title from Japan we index (earliest catalogued entry: 1899).
Our Japan catalog contains 4,579 titles in total (2,908 films).
Audience Engagement
10 audience reviews — more than 6% of Japan films in our index.
Popularity sits at the 1th percentile among Japan films.
Thematic Fingerprint
Tags on Onibi: The Fire Within, grouped by how common each theme is across the full Asian catalog. Rare tags are more distinctive signals.
- reform · 1
- ex-con · 7
- revenge · 210
- love · 123
- yakuza · 93
Reception Benchmarks
Ranked #4,383 of 4,579 Japan films indexed here (4th percentile by TMDB audience score).
Rating is -1.7 points below the Japan average of 6.9/10.
Among Japan Drama productions specifically: #1,891 of 1,933 (top 98%).
Production Details
| Primary Country | Japan |
|---|---|
| Original Language | Japanese |
| Production Companies | GAGA Communications |
| Runtime | 1h 41m |
| Release Date | April 19, 1997 |
| IMDb | tt0119836 |