( ja, 義理/恥, 'Duty/Shame') is a British

crime drama Crime films, in the broadest sense, is a film genre inspired by and analogous to the crime fiction literary genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and its detection. Stylistically, the genre may overlap and combin ...

television series which premiered on BBC Two in the United Kingdom on 17 October 2019, and was released internationally on

Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fi ...

on 10 January 2020. A co-production between the BBC and Netflix, the series was created and written by

Joe Barton Joseph Linus Barton (born September 15, 1949) is an American politician who represented in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1985 to 2019. The district included Arlington, part of Fort Worth, and several small towns and rural areas south ...

, and features an international ensemble cast including

Takehiro Hira is a Japanese theatre, film, and television actor. Early life and education Hira was born in Setagaya, Tokyo, Japan to actors Mikijirō Hira and Yoshiko Sakuma. He was raised in Japan until he was 15 years old. He went to high school at Mose ...

Kelly Macdonald Kelly Macdonald (born 23 February 1976) is a Scottish actress. She is known for her roles in '' Trainspotting'' (1996), '' Gosford Park'' (2001), '' Intermission'' (2003), '' Nanny McPhee'' (2005), '' No Country for Old Men'' (2007), ''Boardwa ...

Yōsuke Kubozuka is a Japanese actor and musician. Career Yosuke Kubozuka has been a model for many magazines and TV commercials before starting out his acting career where he debuted in a 1995 TV crime drama ''Kindaichi Case Files''. In 1998, he starred in the ...

Will Sharpe William Tomomori Fukuda Sharpe (born 22 September 1986) is an English actor, writer, and director. He is known for writing, directing, and starring in the 2016 dark comedy-drama ''Flowers''. He starred in the drama series ''Giri/Haji'' and the s ...

Masahiro Motoki Masahiro Motoki (本木雅弘 ''Motoki Masahiro'', born December 21, 1965) is a Japanese actor. He portrayed protagonist Daigo Kobayashi in '' Departures'', which won the 81st Academy Awards for Best Foreign Language Film. His performance earne ...

Justin Long Justin Jacob Long (born June 2, 1978) is an American actor, comedian, director and screenwriter. Long is known for his film roles, notably appearing in '' Jeepers Creepers'' (2001), ''Dodgeball'' (2004), '' Accepted'' (2006), ''Idiocracy'' (2 ...

Anna Sawai is a New Zealand actress, singer and dancer. She landed her first acting role at age 11 as the titular character in the 2004 Nippon TV production of ''Annie (musical)#International productions, Annie'' shortly after moving to Japan. Sawai later ...

, and

Charlie Creed-Miles Charlie Creed-Miles (born 24 March 1972) is an English actor and musician. Creed-Miles was born in Nottingham, and had his first starring screen role, aged 21, in ''The Punk'' (1993). His brief relationship with actress Samantha Morton Sam ...

. The series is set in London and Tokyo, with dialogue in English and Japanese. In September 2020, it was cancelled by BBC Two and Netflix.

Synopsis

Kenzo Mori (

), a Tokyo detective, travels to London in search of his brother, Yuto (

), who was previously assumed to be dead. Yuto has been accused of murdering the nephew of a

Yakuza , also known as , are members of transnational organized crime syndicates originating in Japan. The Japanese police and media, by request of the police, call them , while the ''yakuza'' call themselves . The English equivalent for the ter ...

member, which threatens to start a gang war in Tokyo. As Kenzo attempts to navigate the unfamiliar territory of London to uncover whether his brother is alive and guilty, he becomes acquainted with DC Sarah Weitzmann (

) of the Metropolitan Police and Rodney Yamaguchi (

), a young half-Japanese, half-British

sex worker A sex worker is a person who provides sex work, either on a regular or occasional basis. The term is used in reference to those who work in all areas of the sex industry.Oxford English Dictionary, "sex worker" According to one view, sex work i ...

. While searching for Yuto in London, Kenzo must also support his family back home in Tokyo. Kenzo's investigation brings him into contact with dangerous elements of London's criminal underworld.

Cast and characters

as Kenzo Mori (

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

: 森健三, ''Mori Kenzō''), a Tokyo police detective who travels to London to search for his missing brother *

as Sarah Weitzmann, a

Detective Constable A constable is a person holding a particular office, most commonly in criminal law enforcement. The office of constable can vary significantly in different jurisdictions. A constable is commonly the rank of an officer within the police. Other peop ...

alienated within the Metropolitan Police *

as Yuto Mori (

: 森勇人, ''Mori Yūto''), Kenzo's younger brother and a member of the Yakuza *

as Rodney Yamaguchi, a charismatic half-Japanese, half-British

rent boy Male prostitution is the act or practice of men providing sexual services in return for payment. It is a form of sex work. Although clients can be of any gender, the vast majority are older males looking to fulfill their sexual needs. Male pro ...

and drug addict living in London * Aoi Okuyama as Taki Mori (

: 森多喜, ''Mori Taki''), Kenzo's rebellious 16-year-old daughter *

as Fukuhara (

: 福原, ''Fukuhara''), a Yakuza boss *

as Connor Abbot, a gangster based in London who is fascinated by Japanese culture. *

as Ellis Vickers, an American who has a business partnership with Abbot * Sophia Brown as Donna Clark, an assassin working for Abbot *

Yūko Nakamura is a Japanese actress. She won the award for best actress at the Buenos Aires International Festival of Independent Cinema 2001 for the film Firefly'' (Hotaru) ''and the award for best supporting actress at the 28th Yokohama Film Festival for ...

as Rei (

: レイ, ''Rei''), Kenzō's wife * Mitsuko Oka as Natsuko (

: なつこ, ''Natsuko''), mother of Kenzō and Yūto *

Katsuya is both a masculine Japanese given name and a Japanese surname. Possible writings *克也, "gram, to be" *勝也, "win, to be" *勝矢, "win, arrow" *勝哉, "win, how" *勝夜, "win, night" *活耶, "active, father" *活弥, "active, extensive, ...

as Toshio (

: としお, ''Toshio''), Kenzō's partner in the

Tokyo Police Department The serves as the prefectural police department of Tokyo Metropolis. Founded in 1874, it is headed by a Superintendent-General, who is appointed by the National Public Safety Commission, and approved by the Prime Minister. The Tokyo Metro ...

* Kazuyuki Tsumura as Chief Inspector Hayashi (

: 林, ''Hayashi''), Kenzo and Toshio's boss * Katsuya Kobayashi as Shin Endo (

: 遠藤慎, ''Endō Shin''), a Yakuza boss and Fukuhara's rival *

Tony Pitts Anthony Pitts (born 10 October 1962) is an English actor, most notable for playing Archie Brooks in the long-running British soap ''Emmerdale Farm'' between 1983 and 1993. Early life Pitts was born in Sheffield, England. His family was wor ...

as Steve Angling, a detective inspector and Sarah's boss *

as Eiko (

: 栄子, ''Eiko''), Fukuhara's daughter, who has a romantic relationship with Yuto *

Tony Way Tony Paul Way (born 7 October 1978) is an English actor, comedian, and writer. He is best known for playing characters in a number of British comedy TV series including '' Extras'', '' After Life'', ''Black Books'' and '' Bang, Bang, It's Reev ...

as Roy, a detective from the Metropolitan Police who is in Tokyo on an exchange programme *

Togo Igawa , known professionally as , is a Japanese actor who works primarily in British films and television. In recent years, he has had roles in major films such as '' Revolver'', ''Memoirs of a Geisha'', '' The Last Samurai'', and ''A Matter of Size ...

as Hotaka Mori (

: 森穂高, ''Mori Hotaka''), father of Kenzō and Yūto * Yoshiki Minato as Jiro (

: 次郎, ''Jirō''), one of Fukuhara's top enforcers *

Jamie Draven Jamie Draven (born Jamie Donnelly on 14 May 1978) is an English actor whose career in films and television began in 1998. One of his early notable parts was as Billy's bullying older brother, Tony, in the hit 2000 film ''Billy Elliot'' and as J ...

as Ian Summers, Sarah's ex-boyfriend and a former Detective Constable in the Metropolitan Police * John McCrea as Tiff, Rodney's ex-boyfriend * Ellie James as Annie, Rodney's friend and Taki's love interest

Production

Development

''Giri/Haji'' was announced in May 2017 as one of several new commissions by the BBC's Controller of Drama,

Piers Wenger Piers Wenger is a British television executive who serves as controller of BBC drama commissioning. Early life Wenger was born Piers John Wenger in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England on 29 June 1972. Career Wenger was appointed as contro ...

, alongside ''

Informer An informant (also called an informer or, as a slang term, a “snitch”) is a person who provides privileged information about a person or organization to an agency. The term is usually used within the law-enforcement world, where informan ...

'', ''

The War of the Worlds ''The War of the Worlds'' is a science fiction novel by English author H. G. Wells, first serialised in 1897 by ''Pearson's Magazine'' in the UK and by ''Cosmopolitan (magazine), Cosmopolitan'' magazine in the US. The novel's first appear ...

'', '' Black Narcissus'', ''

A Suitable Boy ''A Suitable Boy'' is a novel by Vikram Seth, published in 1993. With 1,349 pages (1,488 pages in paperback), the English-language book is one of the longest novels published in a single volume. ''A Suitable Boy'' is set in a newly post-inde ...

'', '' Little Women'', '' A Very English Scandal'', ''Come Home'' and ''

Mrs Wilson ''Mrs Wilson'' (formerly known as ''The Wilsons'') is a 2018 British historical drama serial, executive-produced by and starring Ruth Wilson. The actress plays her real-life grandmother, a widow who uncovers a mysterious and secret life followi ...

'' for

BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, ...

. In August 2018, it was confirmed that ''Giri/Haji'' would air on BBC Two. Wenger described the series as "unlike anything we've ever seen before on British TV".

Filming

Filming began in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

around August 2018, and continued in

Hastings Hastings () is a large seaside town and borough in East Sussex on the south coast of England, east to the county town of Lewes and south east of London. The town gives its name to the Battle of Hastings, which took place to the north-west ...

in March 2019. Filming also took place in

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and List of cities in Japan, largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, ...

. Series lead Takehiro Hira commented on the challenging nature of shooting the bilingual script: "We did have some hard times with the translation... Little nuances on the text didn’t match, or didn’t translate well. So we went back and forth with Joe and the director. It was a challenge, but one we enjoyed."

Episodes

Critical reception

''Giri/Haji'' received critical acclaim. 100% of 22 critic reviews collected by

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

are positive for the series, earning an average rating of 9.06/10. The consensus on the website reads, "Smart, suspenseful, and superbly shot, ''Giri/Haji'' is a near-perfect crime thriller with a surprisingly sharp sense of humor." Writing for the '' Radio Times'', Patrick Cremona described ''Giri/Haji'' as a "breath of fresh air" and a "masterful and sprawling thriller", awarding the series five stars out of five. ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper '' The Sunday Times'' (f ...

'' critic Carol Migley awarded the opening episode four stars out of five, while ''

The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally. It was f ...

'' reviewer Michael Hogan gave it five stars out of five, describing it as "impressionistic, playful and unashamedly arty", as well as "bold, bewitching and slightly bonkers". ''

The New Yorker ''The New Yorker'' is an American weekly magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. Founded as a weekly in 1925, the magazine is published 47 times annually, with five of these issues ...

'' included the series in an article about the best programmes available on streaming services, with reviewer Doreen St. Félix writing: "violently stylish, and also plain violent, ''Giri/Haji'' is a filial drama crossed with a sprawling, sexy police thriller". ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

s Lucy Mangan was more critical, awarding the series three out of five stars based on a partial viewing. Mangan complimented the "unfetishised" portrayal of Japan, but described the series as "a bore" and criticised the more familiar genre tropes. David Cirone of ''J-Generation'' criticized the series as going "heavy on theme, light on story", and

NPR National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other ...

's ''

Fresh Air ''Fresh Air'' is an American radio talk show broadcast on National Public Radio stations across the United States since 1985. It is produced by WHYY-FM in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The show's host is Terry Gross. , the show was syndicated to ...

'' critic John Powers noted that the show's "excesses can get a bit silly".

References

External links

* * *
Interview about ''Giri/Haji''
with writer Joe Barton {{Netflix original ended series (2019–present) 2019 British television series debuts 2019 British television series endings 2010s British drama television series 2010s British television miniseries BBC television dramas English-language television shows Japanese-language Netflix original programming Television shows set in London Television shows set in Tokyo Works about the Yakuza