Slightly crazy star 'Beat' Takeshi was well-known in the '80s for his role as the host and creator of TAKESHI'S CASTLE, the insane game show where contestants injured themselves in a series of weird games. Takeshi made his directorial debut with VIOLENT COP, an effective and downbeat thriller, and followed up that film's success with this, his second outing as director.

I didn't enjoy BOILING POINT as much as Takeshi's previous film, mainly because of the performance of Takeshi himself. Takeshi appears in an extended cameo in the middle part of the film in a role that has little to do with the main plot; in fact, his thirty-minute turn is like a 'mini film' in itself, a portrait of an insane gangster who dishes out violence to one and all, whether it be his henchman, his girlfriend or the gangsters who formerly employed him. This is Takeshi gone over the edge; he's a sadistic, vindictive character and incredibly his cruel exploits are played for laughs, particularly his repetitive violence towards his girlfriend. Are we supposed to laugh at this stuff, I wonder? Because watching this guy commit rape (on his own henchman in the film's most depraved moment) and casual violence isn't my idea of fun. I liked Takeshi in VIOLENT COP and BATTLE ROYALE, but I couldn't stand him here.

It's a shame, as the rest of the film is pretty damn good. We witness the transformation of a mild-mannered gas station attendant into a suicidal fighter against the mob, and the whole film centres around this character of Masaki. Actor Yurei Yanagi, who takes the leading role in his debut performance, is bloody excellent and a real trooper. Although the film offers the Japanese style of taciturn acting – the male actors rarely show expression on their faces – Yanagi makes us sympathise with his character's plight and, indeed, actually like him.

Although the film is essentially a slow-burning revenge flick, you'll be surprised to hear that the action and violence is limited. There's only one shoot-out in the film, although there are quite a few beat-downs and other moments of crazy violence. Instead there's an emphasis on baseball, with many well-shot matches, and characterisation. Many of the incidents within the film, such as the car and motorbike accidents and the casual violence meted out by Takeshi himself, are played for laughs but the humour value is intermittent, not always working. As a result, BOILING POINT is very much a cult movie, one for lovers of offbeat comedy and bizarre, almost surreal antics rather than fans of traditional gangster movies.

Boiling Point (1990) is about a goofy guy who works at a convince store and plays sandlot baseball in his spare time. His head is always in the clouds. One day he insults a high ranking Yakuza member while at work. Then that's when all of his troubles begin. An interesting film by Kitano. This is his second directorial project (after taking over the directorial reigns for an ailing director in Violent Cop). Even though he's prominently featured in the film's trailer, Kitano is only in the film for several scenes (but his part is very memorable). Don't be fooled by the trailer. This is not a hardcore Yakuza film. It's about a young guy who was in the wrong place at the wrong time. He should've "stayed in bed" that day. Poor kid. Recommended.

A.

Boiling Point, originally titled 3 to 4x October in reference to a baseball game shown in the movie, is the first film where Takeshi Kitano was in full charge as writer, director and actor. The movie is quite experimental as it is a mixture of a gangster film, drama and black comedy. Its style foreshadows Takeshi Kitano's later successful movies like Fireworks.

The movie tells the story of Masahiko Ono, a young man with an unspectacular life who is considered the worst player of his terrible baseball team, has a boring job as gas station attendant and has never got on a date with a woman. One day, he confronts a rude yakuza who intimidates him at the gas station. The young man's life goes through dramatic changes from then on. With growing self-confidence, he starts dating a charming waitress of a local restaurant, becomes a better baseball player and gets in touch with members of the underworld. However, the confrontation with the criminal also has drastic consequences as Masahiko Ono's friend and mentor gets beaten up when he tries to solve the conflict between the gas station attendant and the organization. Masahiko Ono decides to take revenge and travels to Okinawa with a friend where they get in touch with a pitiless criminal and his associates to purchase weapons.

On the negative side, the movie has a dragging pace and especially the long baseball sequences are quite unspectacular. The first ten minutes of the movie actually show an amateur baseball game. Other directors would have shown a few scenes consisting of one or two minutes in total but Takeshi Kitano takes his time to plunge us into the protagonist's boring life. The movie is also confusedly meandering between its numerous genres. Some scenes have a gloomily dramatic tone but suddenly turn into gritty violence only to switch to black humour dealing with debatable taboo topics like sexual abuse. It doesn't help that it's hard to empathize with the protagonist who is often shown as being quiet, emotionless an dim-witted. Takeshi Kitano himself only appears halfway through the movie and leaves before the final showdown as he only portrays a side character.

On the positive side, the film had a consistent gloomy mood from start to finish, even in its more humorus parts because they always had somewhat tough undertones. Some of the characters are quite memorable such as the rude and tough barman, former yakuza and protaginist's friend played by Taka Guadalcanal. Takeshi Kitano portrays a pitiless gangster with unpredictable fits of anger who regularly hits his girlfriend and even rapes his best friend. The entire movie is filled with anti-heroes who have failed to find their way in life. The film has quite a few iconic scenes. The movie's showdown is unexpectedly radical. There is an awkward brawl in a bar when people fight each other while dancing, singing and having dinner. My favourite scene is when the tough barman insults a female customer who complains about the smelly restrooms and invites her to go pee outside and take her friends with her.

In the end, Boiling Point is an odd movie with almost as many weaknesses as strengths. It's an acquired taste and certainly unlike any movie you have ever watched. Even by Takeshi Kitano's eclectic standards, Boiling Point stands out as a particularly experimental film. Perhaps this film will grow on me but its weirdness makes it hard to digest. Beyond its awkwardness, the movie still has some depth as the intriguing conclusion leaves room for interpretation. If you like experimental Japanese cinema and don't mind swear words, brutal fights and abusive behaviour, you should give this film a try.