Masahiro Shinoda was a pioneer in Japanese new wave noirs, and he applies his mastery of mood and character to the yazuka genre in Pale Flower.

When a gangster is released from prison, he tries to find his footing in the gambling underworld of his gang when he encounters a wealthy and beautiful thrill seeker who draws him into her web. Together and apart they enter a self-destructive spiral.

Haunting and nihilistic, Pale Flower is a dark meditation on fate and love not often seen in the action-packed world of the yakuza.