A villain returns with tentacle-like control in ‘Tokyo Vice’

In the Season 2 premiere of “Tokyo Vice,” detective Karagiri (Ken Watanabe) describes the intimidating antagonist Tozawa (Ayumi Tanida) as “an octopus” with “tentacles extending everywhere. Cut one off, another grows in its place.” Cinematographer Daniel Satinoff visually brought the painterly dialogue to life in a shocking moment that sees Tozawa make an unexpected return in Episode 3, “Old Law, New Twist.” Emerging from the shadows, a silhouetted Tozawa wraps his arms around Misaki (Ayumi Ito), who believed she had freed herself from his grasp. Conflicting emotions fall across their faces as they gaze directly into the camera lens serving as a mirror. “The series hasn’t done any straight, very close to the lens eyelines, and doing that here made it more impactful,” says Satinoff, who split the series with Corey Walter. The climactic scene illustrates the season’s recurring theme of Tozawa “infiltrating himself into everybody’s lives” and was designed to underscore his dominance and assertive control. “The intention behind the shot is this kind of physical manifestation of him being an octopus,” notes Satinoff. “Tozawa is showing his strength and we are trying to show him owning her. There’s also this feeling of her getting pulled back in when she thought she was out.”