In 1983 Kaneko Shoji made Ryuji, a film that impressed with its realistic and human portrayal of a Yakuza. Not long after, the director died leaving four scripts behind. A free adaptation of one of these scripts, Chinpira, was made by Kawashima Toru. Aoyama, who was very impressed at the time by Ryuji, decided to do justice to Kaneko’s original screenplay and make a more subdued version of Chinpira.The relationship between a boy and an older man in the Japanesegangster world is the main theme of Chinpara. Neither wanted to be a Yakuza, but nor can they really lead a normal civilian life. The young Yoichi finds a job at a nightclub. He makes a fuss when he finds a junk in the toilets and the club manager Matsuo is furious. The affair awakes the interest of club owner Otani in Yoichi. Michio (35) also works in the nightclub and differs greatly from the much more aggressive Yoichi, who is driven by boredom and emptiness, but they become friends. Yoichi thinks that the experienced Michio is too subservient in his attitude to Matsuo. When Yoichi one night witnesses a fight between Matsuo and his lover Yuko, he intervenes. Matsuo wounds Yoichi with a knife, but something beautiful starts to grow between Yoichi and Yuko. Several loves and gangster adventures ensue.
