Fireworks (Hana-Bi)

This is a beautiful and tender movie. Kitano is that sometimes gangster, sometimes policeman that we all love because he is so tough and sexy despite the fact that he is neither at first glance and because he is doomed to face life at its most basic and extreme. This is Japanese cinema at its most direct, and here we have an intimate glance at Kitano's beautiful paintings, that he made during a convalescence from a terrible motorcycle accident. This is a great movie to begin a love affair with Japanese cinema and culture, and with the awesome Kitano.

An eccentric, wildly unpredictable gem from writer-director-star Takeshi "Beat" Kitano, this hard-boiled cop story veers from quiet, tender sentimentalism to explosive, in-your-face violence. Hiding behind mirrored shades for much of the film, Kitano plays Nishi--a devoted husband and friend, and a super-deadly foe--with ice-cool, nearly wordless reserve. Aside from an involuntary facial tic, Nishi's mask-like face rarely changes, even when he's blasting away at bad guys. "Fireworks" is a poetic crime-thriller from one of Japan's preeminent icons.

The movie is a masterpiece worth 5+ stars, one of Kitano's best works. But I was totally dissapointed when I so that the subtitles where burned over the film, as a movie lover I consider this outrageous, the film beautifull cinematography is totally ruined by them. The quality of the DVD is not up to the level of the movie. I can't belive that to this date there are companies creating dvds with subtitles burned over a movie. Please wait and see if Criterion Collection eventually releases "Hanna Bi", they do respect movie lovers.The artwork is lousy, I don't know why they changed Kitano's beautifull artwork which is the original to the japanese release.

Why am i writing this review? I guess the only reasons are to state what a great masterpiece not only of Kitano's work, but of cinema this movie is, and to state my disgust at the insulting DVD quality of this. Its not DVD quality, and it certainly does not live up to the beautiful 35mm picture. The cheap third rate transfer renders everyhting under-exposed, de-saturated and "viedeo-y". When the camer pans, for instance, it looks like you're watching a DV recording of Hana-bi on a tv set. you see the digital lines, for Christ sake! Sadly, the options are slim. One can get the VHS which is pan and scanned, or deal with this ONLY friggin' region 1 DVD. HIGHLY RECOMENDED FILM, however, beware of an aweful and unacceptable transfer. I lost much, if not all respect for New Yoker Films. its a mockery to all lovers of movies.

Don't believe the hype -- this is not nearly as violent as it the descriptions say. And even the violent scenes are somehow less personal, less in your face, and at times, let's face it, funny. Kitano has a unique style and an interesting voice, and I really want to watch this movie again!

Great movie by Beat Takashi. Like most of his other movies, this one is a slow burn buildup. Definitely great example of 1990's yakuza movies.

One of the best movies ever! A gem!

Hana-bi (Takeshi Kitano, 1997)Get a group of Kitano otaku in one place and debate will rage for hours on the subject of which of his films is the best. Eventually, everyone will settle down into three camps-- Kikujiro (which is where you'll find me), Sonatine, and Hana-Bi. All three factions can make strong, valid arguments for their movies, and really it all comes down to personal taste in the end. This is not to say that a person from faction A won't like faction B's favorite movie; all of Kitano's films that I've seen are fantastic (with the exception of Brother, but that's enough brainless fun that it gets a pass), and Hana-bi­ is no exception.Nishi (Kitano) is a cop who's life is really hitting the bricks. His wife Miyuki (Kayoko Kishimoto, in the first of her pairings with Takeshi) is dying of leukemia. His partner Horibe (Ren Osugi, who it sometimes seems is in every Japanese film ever made; he made five film and two recurring TV appearances in 2006 alone) has been paralyzed in a bust gone bad. Nishi feels the need to help them both, but to do so would require him to give up his job; what they most need is time. Which brings us to the question: is it possible to do evil things to insure good outcomes?The one thing everyone seems to say about this movie is that it's gorgeous, and that's certainly the case; Kitano is capable of finding the beauty in just about any location in which he chooses to film. It's almost a trademark. As you should also expect from a Kitano film, the characters are exquisitely drawn, and the action is fast and furious, lending the film's quieter moments just that much more emotion (how do you get the audience to tear up over a man opening a box of painting supplies? Ask Takeshi Kitano. He did it here). At least one critic (Piero Scruffi) has selected Hana-bi as one of the top 1000 films of all time, and it also shows up in the collected and weighted list of the thousand best found at They Shoot Pictures, Don't They?. I believe these accolades are not without merit, though I do think Kitano has done better work (as I mentioned above). Still, a Takeshi Kitano film is better than 99% of the muck you're going to see on DVD or in the theater this year, and Hana-bi is near the top of his output. Strongly recommended. **** ½