Brother

Internationally acclaimed director and Japanese media phenomenon Takeshi Kitano follows up his well-regarded Kikujiro with this straight-ahead gangster saga with a cross-cultural twist. The film focuses on Yamamoto (Kitano), a yakuza forced out of the country when a gang war all but wipes out his ...more

In much of his work, Takeshi Kitano has coupled deadpan wit and sentimentality with jarring, often horrific violence. In his previous outing, Kikujiro, he veered towards the former, while with Brother, Kitano firmly positions himself in the realm of the latter. While never losing Kitano's signature mordant humor, this film features disembowelments, grisly beatings, and buckets of lopped-off pinkies. Although lacking the brilliant narrative experimentation of Hana-Bi, Brother retains that film's ...more