The Economic Crisis and the Search for a Place in Tokyo Vice

Abstract

The depiction of Tokyo in the series Tokyo Vice (2022) is conditioned by the current understanding of Japan's economic transformation in the 1980s and 1990s. The visual identification and narrative motifs of the production were determined by Michael Mann. The director typically explores contemporary issues through the analysis of urban landscapes. In Tokyo Vice, the broader image of the metropolis is closely linked to the fate of the characters. Mann's main focus is on characters without a place. He portrays them as victims of neoliberal ideology at the hands of the modern financial system.