Giri / Haji

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Season 1
User Score
7.3

Generally favorable reviews- based on 33 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 24 out of 33
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 33
  3. Negative: 5 out of 33
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User Reviews

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  1. Suttree
    Jan 23, 2020
    10
    Giri/Haju starts off as an above average crime drama, and just keeps getting better and deeper. With each episode my desire to see what happened next grew. The cast, the cinematography, the dual locations, the risks, and the wit make for a superior series that is not to be missed. There is no formulae, and the refreshingly bold moves make for surprises and payoffs. Highly recommended.
  2. SimboTheKing
    May 18, 2020
    6
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. This show is a crime show exploring the effects of a Yakuza crime in both England and Japan. It's a bit soapy as it heavily explores the lives of many characters both before and in the context of this crime.

    Good:
    Very believable acting
    Relatively complex story which touches on a lot of topics
    Great cinematography

    Bad:
    Some of the more surreal bits fell flat (the dancing wtf)
    Story had some bits that broke believability a lot    … Expand
  3. smodcast
    Jan 11, 2020
    10
    Solid cast and characters. 3 episodes in. Definitely worth a look if you're into crime dramas
  4. Kuggz
    Feb 13, 2020
    10
    The one show on Netflix that was too short. From the beginning it snowballs to the climax getting better and better as it increases in suspense. Love the mix of the London underground with the Yakuza storylines. Shout out to Kelly Macdonald she shined.
  5. aantik4444
    Jan 10, 2020
    0
    Stylish cinematography but not much else. Generic writing, bad acting. Tried hard but couldn't finish the pilot.
  6. ToyzRUsKid
    Feb 10, 2020
    10
    Giri/Haji transforms the classic crime drama into a heartfelt, sharply funny, clash of cultures that will have you fall in love with its characters. With many stand out moments that will have you rewinding to laugh or cry with them again. Once you see past the surface of some of its common elements, it's packed with an artistic view of personalities, relationships, and struggles many willGiri/Haji transforms the classic crime drama into a heartfelt, sharply funny, clash of cultures that will have you fall in love with its characters. With many stand out moments that will have you rewinding to laugh or cry with them again. Once you see past the surface of some of its common elements, it's packed with an artistic view of personalities, relationships, and struggles many will find relatable.… Expand
  7. jorgefernandess
    Nov 25, 2020
    10
    Easily one of the best (if not the best) series of 2020.
    Besides the great storytelling, Giri/Haji is worth watching even just for the cinematography, the way they change between aspect-ratios, colors, and scenes results in a very addictive tv show, the only thing bad about it is that it was canceled.
  8. geewah
    Jan 10, 2021
    9
    One of the best shows of 2020.
    Fantastic, smart storytelling that uses the often poorly used cultural differences to great effect here.
    The cinematography is also excellent.
  9. ClariseSamuels
    May 2, 2021
    7
    This is an unusual detective series set in London and Tokyo with more than half of the dialogue in Japanese with subtitles. Detective Kenzo Mori (Takehiro Hira) is keeping an eye on the uneasy peace between violent Japanese gangster families in Tokyo. His own little brother Yuto (Yosuke Kubozuka) was killed after getting involved with these criminals, but now there is reason to believeThis is an unusual detective series set in London and Tokyo with more than half of the dialogue in Japanese with subtitles. Detective Kenzo Mori (Takehiro Hira) is keeping an eye on the uneasy peace between violent Japanese gangster families in Tokyo. His own little brother Yuto (Yosuke Kubozuka) was killed after getting involved with these criminals, but now there is reason to believe that Yuto is alive and a mobster boss who is still assassinating gangland members in London. Kenzo is sent to London to track down his brother with the excuse that he is taking a refresher course on detective methodology.

    The series is beautifully filmed in both cities with a talented ensemble that includes noted Scottish actress Kelly Macdonald. Takehiro Hira, a well-known actor in Japan who now lives in Hawaii, is the main protagonist who carries the series and keeps the eight episodes glued together. As Kenzo, his subtle emotions and stoic weariness are a fascinating kaleidoscope of human sensitivity, a dedicated work ethic, and a Japanese sense of duty to family, which co-exists with the confusing need for a more Western sense of individualism. 

    It is the various subplots that may have thwarted the success of the show so that the planned second series got canceled by the joint enterprise of Netflix and the BBC. There are, for example, incidents of extremely violent murders carried out by Japanese mobsters. In London Kenzo enlists the help of Rodney (Will Sharpe), a half-Japanese, drug-addicted "rent boy" (male prostitute) who has connections to the underworld that Kenzo needs to infiltrate to find his brother. Besides showing some graphic depictions of Rodney at work, the plot gets more exceptional when Kenzo's headstrong teenage daughter, Taki (Aoi Okuyama), joins her father in London and befriends Rodney. Rodney then helps the 16-year-old Taki to come out by introducing her to a female friend of his, a salon hairdresser/owner who appears to be at least late twenties and thus too old for a teenager. In addition, Kenzo seems to be oddly trusting that drug addict/sex worker Rodney would be a suitable friend for his underage daughter, even if Rodney does have a heart of gold. Kenzo even permits Taki to stay overnight in Rodney’s flat, a tiny room with one bed (Rodney sleeps on the floor) and a bathroom down the hall, which is an unsafe environment. It is true that Rodney, somehow healed by his closeness to Kenzo’s family, is reformed by episode 8 and goes into rehab after returning to his mother’s safe, middle-class home. The producers were planning a second series focusing on Taki and Rodney, which unfortunately never materialized.

    Although the series was popular in Britain and was even nominated for several BAFTA awards, I wonder if the American reception to the violence and the highly sexualized elements of the story, not to mention extensive subtitles for a language no one understands, might have been what helped to convince Netflix/BBC to pull the plug. At the end, Kelly Macdonald in her role of detective Sarah Weitzman, Kenzo’s British/Jewish lover, is trying to get a commitment from Kenzo in a coffee shop with Taki standing nearby. “It’s over,” Taki says in Japanese to her father. “What did she say?” asks Sarah. Kenzo does not answer. FIN.    … Expand
  10. Piso
    Jul 4, 2021
    2
    HUGELY OVERRATED! While the main, twisty plot is interesting, the dour, morose tone, unlikeable characters, and woke window dressing ruin this melodrama. It's less a gangster epic and more a soap opera promoting female and homosexual empowerment. I came to see a fun, John Woo style ass kicking story of hostile brothers, but found myself, at the climax of the show, watching a moody danceHUGELY OVERRATED! While the main, twisty plot is interesting, the dour, morose tone, unlikeable characters, and woke window dressing ruin this melodrama. It's less a gangster epic and more a soap opera promoting female and homosexual empowerment. I came to see a fun, John Woo style ass kicking story of hostile brothers, but found myself, at the climax of the show, watching a moody dance routine centered around a suicidal lesbian. Literally. I'm not joking. Humor has no part in this dull, depressing, occasionally nauseating show. Neither does fun nor anything which feels good. On the other hand, if you want to learn more about what it's like to be gay in London, this is the show for you.… Expand

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
76

Generally favorable reviews - based on 4 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 3 out of 4
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 4
  3. Negative: 0 out of 4
  1. The Daily Beast
    Reviewed by: Nick Schager
    Jan 10, 2020
    70
    A professionally mounted and consistently engaging regurgitation of stock crime-fiction archetypes and entanglements, it’s a bilingual work (available now) less interested in reinvention than in solid, straightforward dramatic thrills. On that count, the series achieves its modest goals—and, thanks to a few unexpected flourishes, occasionally exceeds them.
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  2. Paste Magazine
    Reviewed by: Allison Keene
    Jan 9, 2020
    95
    Giri / Haji is a smart series that rewards your attention (and a bit of a slow start as it builds) as a deeply satisfying story. Its ambiguous ending also somehow feels complete, because the shame part of the narrative has been addressed for everyone. Though it would be wonderful to spend more time in this world with a second season, there is a palpable and beautiful sense of healing that has ended this one.
    Read full review
  3. The Times
    Reviewed by: Carol Midgley
    Jan 7, 2020
    80
    There is an artfulness to this drama -- the split screen, the surprise shift to cartoon animation -- that promises it won't be just another international crime tale. For its sake I hope Sharpe will be centre-stage.
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