Angry Squad: Civil Servant and Seven Swindlers
Wealthy real estate developer, Tachibana, is a tax cheat. Jiro Kumazawa is a dedicated tax collector. After his good friend mysteriously dies, easy-going, moping civil servant, Jiro, suspects Tachibana and wants to collect taxes of over 1Billion yen from the real estate mogul and solve his friend’s murder. An Angry Squad is about to be formed.
Tachibana is well-connected with politicians and seems invulnerable. As a consequence, Kumazawa reluctantly teams up with Himaro, a petty con artist since he doesn’t know how to trap Tachibana and collect the back taxes by himself. Indebted to Kumazawa for not filing a claim for a fraudulent car-sales scam Himaro perpetrated on Kumazawa, Himaro trains Kumazawa in the ways of the criminal. Other minor-league swindlers are recruited for the mission. Although Kumazawa has regrets hanging out with a bad posse, he is determined to convict Tachibana.
Of course nothing goes as planned in this delightfully entertaining caper, reminiscent of the “Ocean’s Eleven” and “Ocean’s Twelve: series. Surprises are everywhere in the backstories of why these inept men committed misdemeanors and scams in the first place. The ending is difficult to guess, since the plot twists are cleverly disguised by character flaws and emotions the viewer does not anticipate.
Overall a hilarious and charming watch to add to the heist genre!
Availability: This Japanese movie was available on international flights in September 2025. Watch for its availability to stream free in the US! Until then, view on YouTube.