To celebrate the incredible Takeshi Kitano’s 79th birthday, I decided to revisit his directorial debut, VIOLENT COP (1989). I first discovered Kitano in the late 90’s when I saw that his film FIREWORKS (1997) was available for rent at my local Hastings Entertainment Superstore. Of course I rented it. It was slow, but it was also incredibly powerful, and I found myself paying attention to Kitano’s career. He has this incredible screen presence, and I was soon watching everything he came out with from BROTHER (2000) and BATTLE ROYALE (2000) to the update of ZATOICHI: THE BLIND SWORDSMAN (2003). I also looked back at the earlier work in his career, which brings us back to VIOLENT COP. 

VIOLENT COP introduces us to Detective Azuma (Takeshi Kitano), a Tokyo cop whose methods are almost as brutal as the crimes he investigates. When his best friend, the corrupt cop Iwaki (Sei Hiraizumi), is murdered, Azuma uncovers a criminal network tied to drugs, corruption, exploitation, you name it! His investigation eventually brings him into contact with a drug running faction of the Yakuza. Through a seemingly routine series of beatings and threats, Azuma closes in on the killer Kiyohiro (Hakuryu). Complicating matters is Azuma’s sister, Akari (Maiko Kawakami), a mental case and drug addict. When Akari is kidnapped and the Yakuza refuses to give up any information, Azuma will stop at nothing to get his own, unique brand of justice.

First time director Takeshi Kitano brings an interesting and minimalist quality to VIOLENT COP, with his long static shots and sparse dialogue creating an atmosphere where the brutality of the story just feels normal. Actor Takeshi Kitano’s performance as Azuma is just as quiet as the director. Once the violence comes, it resonates and lands extremely hard precisely because the film refuses to make it seem impossible. Kitano creates a film that is way more realistic than most of us are willing to admit!!

Ultimately, VIOLENT COP doesn’t condemn or endorse Azuma, choosing to just observe him as his story ultimately leads to tragedy. As Kitano’s directorial debut, however, it introduces us to a unique and confident new voice… bleak, unsentimental, and startlingly unsettling. Kitano, the actor and the director, isn’t afraid to just stare at the camera and dare you to decide if there’s any difference between the good guy and the bad guy!