Seijun Suzuki was born in Nihonbashi, Tôkyô, on May 24, 1923. In 1943, he entered the army to fight at the front. In 1946, he enrolled in the film department of the Kamakura Academy and passed the assistant director's exam. For the next few years, he worked as an assistant director at several studios. In 1958, he directed his first film, Minato no kanpai: Shôri o waga te ni (1956), and from then on he directed three to four films each year. With Koroshi no rakuin (1967), he came into conflict with Hori Kyusaku, who was the president of Nikkatsu Studios at the time. Because of this, he was forced to work in television the next ten years. In 1977, Hishu monogatari (1977), his return to theatrically-released films, was released.