:
Riki Takeuchi,
Sho Aikawa,
Renji Ishibashi,
more...
:
Takashi Miike
see all cast/crew...
: Not Rated
: Kino on Video/Tidepoint Pictures/Viz
: Action, Foreign, Japan, Cops, Yakuza
: 105 min.
: Japanese
: English
see additional details...
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Takashi Miike takes a dime-a-dozen yakuza script and turns it inside out in this high-octane surrealist crime action thriller. The film's first ten minutes is a breathless montage depicting a naked woman clutching a bag of cocaine being thrown off a high-rise, a porcine Chinese gangster devouring bowl after bowl of noodles before getting whacked, a tinsel-wigged stripper in mid-grind, another Chinese gangster having sex with a guy in a pubic bathroom, clowns throwing knives, and the world's longest cocaine line. Welcome to planet Miike -- one that seems unnervingly like reality but just tweaked enough that the viewer believes almost anything can (and does) happen. What follows is a tale pitting narcotics cop Jojima (Sho Aikawa), who has an ailing daughter and a neglected wife, against Ryuichi (Riki Takeuchi), a Chinese-born gangster sporting a hairstyle that would make Wayne Newton jealous. As Ryuichi tries to muscle in on a big drug haul from Taiwan, those closest to him get killed -- particularly his whey-faced younger brother and girlfriend (the latter meets a particularly grisly end at the hands of a sadistic scat-enthusiast yakuza). Likewise, Jojima, who is on Ryuichi's tail, loses his partner, his wife, and his daughter. Soon the two are on the road to a literally cataclysmic confrontation. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide
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| the japanese keanu
by liversounds
April 13, 2006 - 12:40 PM PDT
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| takeuchi... has his moments, but im pretty sure hes a horrible actor... HOWEVER: this film is bold and creative--i would go further and say that all fans of surrealism will recognize this film as a masterpiece... for some, the movies depth may be lost in the shocking and gritty storyline--but there is a lack of directorial shame unknown in american film... |
| Not the best of Miike
by Jezcab
December 28, 2005 - 11:20 AM PST
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1 out of 3 members found this review helpful
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| This movie is so over the top, it's interesting to watch, but in a train wreck sort of way. I've found a much better liking for his other films. |
| World's longest line of coke
by JonathanM
August 25, 2004 - 1:12 PM PDT
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6 out of 6 members found this review helpful
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For the life of me, I can't remember what this movie was about. But I'm left with the general impression that it was all fairly exciting.
Among the million other things that happen in the first five minutes of this movie, a businessman snorts the world's longest line of coke, and then dies of unrelated bullet wounds moments later. That, alone, should be worth the price of admission.
But there's also lots of macho showdowns, exploding noodles, loose women, and people pulling rocket launchers out of their asses. Fundamentally, this is a flawed, poorly-paced movie, but at least it's a fun one.
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GreenCine Member Rating
(Average 6.61)
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