Japanese auteur Beat Takeshi is the anti-Woo. While both men have a fascination with gangsters and violence, China’s John Woo is known for his loud amalgamation of violence and poetry. On the other hand, the films of "Beat" Takeshi Kitano are subtle and realistic, but have as much impact as Woo’s hyper-kinetic crime films. The images in Takeshi’s films are violent and unpleasant, but have less of a body count than Woo’s films. That’s not to say there is no action in BOILING POINT (or Takeshi’s other films), it’s just that the action does not take center stage like a Woo film. In the case of BOILING POINT, when the violence comes it has more of a shock because you are not jaded to the furor (as in most HK films, the constant violence throughout the picture desensitizes you). Takeshi’s style is more rooted in the real world. Having said that, as poetic as Woo’s images may be, Takeshi equally serves up poetry and striking visuals in BOILING POINT.

BOILING POINT was originally released in Japan as 3-4X JUGATSU (1990), a title that actually refers to a baseball score (the main character is a baseball player). Besides writing and directing BOILING POINT, Beat Takeshi also stars in the film as the renegade Uehara, a vicious gangster who was kicked out of the Yakuza (Japanese mafia) for extortion. Masahiko (THE RING 2) Ono is the slacker protagonist, Masaki. Takahito Iguchi plays Takashi Iguchi, Masaki’s baseball coach who is also ex-Yakuza. Hisashi (RAN) Ogawa is Yakuza gang boss Otomo. Minora (CHINPIRA: TWO PUNKS) Iizuka portrays Kazuo, Masaki’s friend who accompanies him to Okinawa.

BOLING POINT begins and ends on a sandlot baseball field, where only the amateur players attend, except for the coach's girlfriend and later on for the sweet girlfriend, Sayaka (Yuriko Ishida), of the deadpan star of the film, Masaka (Ono). He picks her up in a restaurant because that's what his friend tells him to do. Masaka is a loser, who has no problem being who he is. He is inarticulate, moronic, and the worst one on the baseball team, who doesn't even get into the game except as a pinch-hitter, someone who will strike out without swinging at a ball that is right over the middle of the plate. He is also inept in the gas station where he works, and when he fails to properly service a local Yakuza member’s car, he gets punched out and threatened. But when he punches back, the Yakuza claims his arm is broken and he wants compensation. The dispute escalates on both sides, and, of course, it makes no sense what they are fighting over. But it is made a big deal when the local Yakuza head, Otomo (Igawa), comes to see the gas station owner and demands his revenge.

When his baseball coach (Iguchi), an ex-Yakuza himself, tries to come to the rescue of Masaka, he confronts his old Yakuza associates, and they disrespect and beat him. Iguchi is now drawn into the conflict and he needs to go to Okinawa to see the vicious ex-Yakuza, Uehara, who will get provide him with weapons. Since he is too beaten up to get out of bed, Masaka, bent on getting back at the gangsters, volunteers to go there along with his friend, Kazuo (Iizuka).

In Okinawa, they meet the maniacal Uehara in a disco bar. They are immediately intimidated by his malicious behavior, and are unable to escape when the gangster's initiates a series of violent acts, including the beating of his girlfriend, male rape, cutting off a man’s finger, and various other mental and physical abuse. Uehara performs these heinous acts so casually, as if this kind of mayhem was as natural as eating rice cakes.

By some strange luck, the two baseball players return alive with their guns to seek revenge. Meantime, Uehara walks into the Yakuza chief's headquarters armed with his associate's finger and a AK-47 hidden in a bouquet of wildflowers, as he settles up with the Yakuza that he embezzled money from. Masaka is unable to go through with killing the local Yakuza chiefs with the gun he brought back, but a gas truck barrels into the mobster's headquarters killing all of the gangsters that are present.

Takeshi proves that he is a talented and innovative filmmaker. His films are always visually startling, with a bevy of bizarre shots. He steeps the film in local color, realistic human behavior, and the texture of everyday life. Tranquillity explodes into violence, then returns to its original serenity. Takeshi accomplishes this with crosscuts and juxtapositions. Besides supplying the film with a compelling and original story, Takeshi employs some unique visual cues that separate BOILING POINT from other Yakuza dramas. He imbues the film with an aura of the surreal. For instance, background characters in the film are glimpsed with bloody faces, sitting on the curb by themselves. These scenes (and others like them) happen for no reason other than to make the film seem bizarre. In another scene, after shooting a arms dealer dead, Uehara goes to a field and puts tiger lilies in his hair. These kind of images provide the film with a rich, hallucinatory flair (David Lynch, anyone?).

One of his biggest filmmaking tricks Takeshi uses is the complete lack of a musical score. Nothing. Nada. Not even through the opening and closing credits. Real life doesn’t have a score does it? I’ve seen many films that at times, eschew the use of scoring at various points in a film, to make a point or heighten the melodrama. But I’ve never seen a film without any kind of score at all. Takeshi’s risk pays off, because this tactic brings an extra bleak tone to the narrative.

As an actor, BOILING POINT is somewhat of a departure for Beat Takeshi. Previous films like VIOLENT COP and SONATINE show him in a heroic role, but here he plays the heavy. An even if you find you don’t like the unconventional storytelling and aesthetics of BOILING POINT, at least you can appreciate his performance, as the manic sociopath so dangerous that even the Yakuza didn’t want him. You can see in his performance bits of Robert Deniro and Harvey Keitel; the way Uehara mercilessly commits a brutal act, then follows it up with a line of black humor.

Takeshi casts Masahiko Ono as protagonist Masaki. Though Masaki is the central character in the film, Takeshi does not make him out to be a hero. In the beginning, Masaki is a slacker who is considered the worst guy on his baseball team in a society that places a high social value on a sport that represents male pride. Unfortunately, because Takeshi places the focus not on himself, and on the supporting cast, they cannot carry the film. Lead actor Masahiko Ono is especially wooden. Although this may be because his character is supposed to be a loser. One of Takeshi’s weakness’ is the portrayal of women. None of his films have any strong or positive female characters. They all serve as the gangster’s moll, or some other token character of low moral fiber.

SIGHT

Believe it or not, Fox Lorber actually did a pretty decent job with this one, with only minimal problems carried over from the source elements. BOILING POINT is presented in the original widescreen ratio of (1.85.1). The image is exceptionally rich and clean. The colors are natural and vivid, and there are no nicks or scratches. We did observe some very slight dirt, speckles, and the usual grain. Despite the solid black level, the night exterior scenes are lacking in clarity. Thankfully, these scenes are few; most of the movie takes place during the day, or inside on a set with plenty of back lighting. Katsumi Yanagishima’s cinematography is nothing short of amazing, with his depiction of the urban Japanese landscape, the vast beaches and ocean, and the focus on the baseball fields. The detail level for these scenes is very good considering the transfer lacks 16x9 enhancement. The bloodshed is minimal, but convincing nonetheless. Fox Lorber’s easy-to-read subtitles make for a quick and enjoyable read. There were no DVD mastering flaws such as bleeding, chroma noise, edge enhancement or compression artifacts. This is a surprise considering its a Fox Lorber DVD.

SOUND

Fox Lorber present the original stereo elements on a remixed Dolby Digital 2.0 surround sound mix. The mix is rather erratic, not because of poor DVD authoring, but rather Beat Takeshi’s audio preferences. As mentioned earlier, there is no score. So there are long periods in between the action set pieces where only dialog is heard. Throughout most of the movie, the sound field is relatively quiet. You’d be surprised how unnerving this effect is (and that’s what Takeshi wants to achieve). Only when the gun fire kicks in do you realize what a potent DD 2.0 mix this is! The mix delivers a sound that is very clear and natural. There is no hiss, background noise, or distortion. This is mainly a dialog driven movie, with the Japanese voices emanating clearly from the center channel. Ambiance from the rear speakers is low except in the action scenes. The bass is low, but again, not needed. The lack of any type of a music score produces a feeling of isolation and alienation. The only music on here at all is a scene where the characters go a dance club. The mix serves its purpose nicely.

FEATURES

The only real extra is the original theatrical trailer. The trailer is widescreen (1.85.1) and is in Dolby Digital 2.0. This 2:00 trailer is in very good shape; as good as the feature itself. There are also Production Credits and Talent Bios (for Beat Takeshi and Hisashi Igawa).

CONCLUSION

Ultimately, BOILING POINT can be interpreted as a social commentary of contemporary life in Japan. The baseball team represents the structured, team-oriented society that must face imminent modernization. Even in a polite country like Japan, enamored by a structured game like baseball, not everyone plays by the rules. BOILING POINT delights as a cruel form of entertainment, and is not suited for everyone’s taste. But if you like the unconventional, no-rules approach evident in films like PULP FICTION, then you may want to give BOILING POINT a try. Fox Lorber did an admirable job with this DVD (for once) and the only area I can complain about is the extras. They could have put more on, at least trailers for their other Japanese films (like VIOLENT COP).

BOILING POINT is available from DVDEmpire.com

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