It's a paradoxically charming Daisuke Yamanouchi film about a homeless pimp played by Manzo Shinra (who normally plays heavies and can be scary). Both the end credits and the film's title call him "ossan", i.e. "old bloke". He recruits women into prostitution and occasionally gets them killed... but he's likeable. He's a friendly, well-meaning soul who wants to improve his friends' lives and will earn genuine affection from them.

I disagree with the translation of the English title, by the way. The primary meaning of "Himo" is "string, cord, leash," etc. but also means a pimp, gigolo and/or a man who's financially dependent on a woman. (I've also seen it applied without gender implication to anyone who shamelessly leeches off someone else and lives in their home without paying a penny.) It's unclear which meaning(s) apply here, but "gigolo" in English suggests a young man who's providing escort/sex services... and Manzo Shinra is a big old bloke with a belly. He was born in 1959 and is so much older than his female friends that his relationships with them can be almost avuncular.

This film is a love story. Miyuki (played by Kizuna Sakura) has been dumped and gets involved with Ossan, even though she first saw him being gross in a cafe with a girl who appeared mentally deficient. His table manners are also appalling (which is a big deal in Japan). Nonetheless, Miyuki sleeps with Ossan, quits her job and moves in with him. (She also starts working in a brothel to support him.) Bizarrely, this is understandable. Ossan is sensitive, straightforward and tries to help all his girls. Even after a one year time-skip and having married someone else, Miyuki doesn't stop waiting for him. She'll get insecure and ask if he prefers younger girls (because her previous partner did), but he couldn't care less about that. They're a sweet couple, if your definition of "sweet" includes "living off the proceeds of your girlfriend's prostitution" and "people he knows occasionally get beaten up or killed".

We also see how he helped other girls find sex work.

1. One was married to such a cock that sleeping with strangers for money was an improvement. He threw a tantrum and beat her black and blue because she'd found a bargain when shopping for meat for dinner.

2. A university student had been working in a bar and had a slightly awkward relationship with her boyfriend. He was pressing her for sex, even though she wanted to wait. Ossan diagnoses her issues, gives her fatherly relationship advice and some sex education. She leaves her boyfriend, quits her job and becomes a call girl at an agency he recommended... but "she's planning to do volunteer work in Africa."

This is a quiet, unusual film, capable of being either gentle or brutal. Women suffer violence, but never from Ossan. (If you hurt one of his girlfriends, though, you might be missing an eye when we next see you.) Frankly, he's a loser. Sometimes, he'll be homeless and supporting himself by collecting empty cans. "I haven't had a bath in a month." Women love him, which manages to be both bizarre and understandable. You will too. I liked this film a good deal. If nothing else, Ossan is probably Manzo Shinra's career-best role.