In a review in
Critics Roundup, reviewer Marc Walkow wrote that initially Fukusaku and Toei mimicked rival
Nikkatsu's 'borderless action' films but that Fukusaku's sixth film, Wolves, Pigs and Men (64), 'broke the mold' by taking the 'best elements' from his earlier works and adding commentary on social issues 'endemic to Japan's transition from postwar defeated nation to economic powerhouse'." In the book
Historical Dictionary of Japanese Cinema, author Jasper Sharp notes that along with
Gang vs. G-Men,
Wolves, Pigs and Men established Fukasaku's pattern for contemporary action and crime dramas drawing inspirations from the
French New Wave and American
noir, featuring realistic portrayals of violence and often set in chaotic, working-class settings. ==References==