Wolff rating: GOOD
Plot summary: Middle-aged gangster realizes what his life has become, and doesn't like it.
Biased, pithy comments: No ballet of bullets, as one might expect from a 90s yakuza film, but we get instead a contemplative film about the leader of a powerful, but not dominating, clan of killers and loansharks. Kitano is introspective, but not lyrical; he gives time for thoughts and characters to sink in, punctuating them with humor, a tad of violence, and even a woman. An excellent, thoughtful film with a study in gentle humor and subtle brutality. See it.
Other Notes: Re-released by Tarantino as part of his ``Rolling Thunder'' distribution company.
How many times I have seen it: x1
Starring: Takeshi Kitano (as ``Beat'' Takeshi), Aya Kikumai, Tetsu Watanbe, Masanobu Katsumura.
Directed by: Takeshi Kitano