Boiling Point/3-4x October - 1990 - Dir. Kitano

You know, I find Takeshi Kitano AWFULLY baffling sometimes. I can get with his dark-humor/intense violence mix, after all, I DO VISIT 4chan. I dunno. It has something to do with the way he tells stories. I find his films very difficult to follow. Even as someone who prefers a movie to have a meandering plot, he meanders the HELL out of the plot. And for some reason, I always have difficulty telling his characters apart. I was looking back upon previous Kitano films, trying to figure out which MAJOR ones I'd seen. It's a pretty bad sign when I've seen them all but they've sort of blended into one large movie with sudden bursts of violence and lackidasical days on the beach. You know, this doesn't really sound like I like Kitano very much. I actually do. I get a real kick out of his movies. And considering Seijun Suzuki is one of my favorite directors, you'd think I'd be a little more forgiving. OH MAN! I have a mosquito bite in my beard! That's the WORST! Cause now I can't tell my mosquito itches from my normal beard itches. ANYWAY, I feel like I have to enjoy Kitano's films the same way I have to enjoy Suzuki's. In a kind of brainless manner... enjoying the flow, pacing, mise-en-scene, and quirks of each film. It definitely helps to have Kitano onscreen who really carries a ton of charisma even when he's playing the SHITTIEST GUY IN JAPAN: an ultra violent, abusive mobster who seems to have sexual identity issues (if you consider molesting and raping men to be an identity issue). The malaise filled main character is fun to watch, and I totally got behind him, but man, malaise isn't nearly as much fun to watch as psychopaths. I do like that even the crazies in Kitano's films will sit still more his lovely, long wide shots of a group of people staring (see below). I think Kitano's silences in his films hold my attention like no other. I have a consistant desire to understand Kitano's worlds, his message, and his goal. But I suppose I feel like I always come out short. Maybe it's the culture barrier or maybe he's just fucking around/fucking with me. I just can't tell. But it doesn't stop me from having a good time.

WHAT!? Beat Takeshi DIED in one of his movies!? UNHEARD OF!