A new four-part documentary series, "The Paris-Tokyo Job (Or How To Rob A Yakuza)," announced by French studio Studiocanal, recounts the 1985 theft of nine Impressionist paintings from the Marmottan Museum in Paris, including Claude Monet's "Impression, Sunrise" (1872). The heist, dubbed the heist of the century, was carried out by a gang led by Philippe "Fifi" Jamin, who partnered with Shuinichi Fujikuma in Japan. The series, directed by Jérémie Rozan and Jérôme Pierrat, traces the gang's criminal trajectory from art thefts in France to the 1986 Mitsubishi Bank robbery in Tokyo, and follows investigator Mireille Ballestrazzi's pursuit across France, Japan, and Corsica, leading to the recovery of the paintings in 1990.
The story matters because it highlights the intersection of organized crime, international art theft, and the global art market, revealing how stolen masterpieces can become commodities in illicit networks. The documentary also underscores the enduring cultural significance of Monet's "Impression, Sunrise," a foundational work of Impressionism valued at over €100 million, and the challenges of recovering looted art across jurisdictions. By dramatizing these events, the series brings public attention to the vulnerabilities of museum security and the complex underworld of art crime.