Disc Details
Special Features:	Theatrical trailers.
Video Format:	Widescreen (1.85:1) [SS-DL]
Languages:	English (Dolby Digital 5.1) English (2.0 Dolby Surround)
Captions:	English / French / Spanish
Casing:	1-Disc Keep Case

      A cultural icon in his native Japan, Takeshi "Beat" Kitano is best known in America for his masterful direction of ultra-violent cop and gangster films -- a beautifully paced mixture of poetry and death not so far off from famed Hong Kong import John Woo. He is a master at capturing the calm before the storm, and reveres the ruthless nature of street violence. In his English language film debut "Brother," writer-director-star Kitano rekindles many of the same qualities, but unfortunately loses some of the heart found in his other films, his most acclaimed being 1998's unflinching and brutal masterpiece "Fireworks."

      In "Brother," Kitano plays Yamamoto, a displaced Yakuza enforcer forced to leave the country after his crime family is decimated in a clan war in Tokyo. Fleeing to L.A., he meets up with his younger half-brother (Claude Maki), who's a petty street thug pushing drugs in a small-time local gang. With the cold-blooded "aid" of Yamamoto, they quickly organize their small-time crew into a fierce operation whose power in the city rivals that of Japantown's Yakuza clan, and possibly even the Italian Mafia.

      Kitano seems to savor the juxtaposition of the Yakuza to that of the Samurai in feudal Japan, and it is one of the film's finer qualities. Their frequently savage tribal rituals are a fusion of the Samurai honor code (underlings sacrifice their lives for "the family," and clan bosses occasionally commit "seppuku," or suicide by sword slicing through the abdomen) and Mafia cruelty (countless fingers are severed and in one particularly gruesome scene, an enforcer shoves broken chopsticks up the nose of an unfortunate enemy), which gives them an almost larger-than-life persona.

      The story is a rise-and-fall saga of Yamamoto's newly formed L.A. clan, and Kitano's masterful work choreographing the collapse of their small empire is relentless and devastating. In one of the most stunning action scenes I've ever experienced, Kitano slyly films a massive shootout in a warehouse in total darkness, the only visible elements being the occasional silhouettes of gunmen materializing as the muzzle flashes of gunfire explode. Kitano unfortunately favors the more gory aspects of warfare (believe me, they're not for the faint of heart) rather than these more subtle sequences, and it eventually gives the film an exhausted feel.

      The character relationships among the L.A. clan never seem to fully gel, and the chemistry between the two key characters, Denny (Omar Epps) and Yamomoto (Kitano), seems slightly unnatural, as if the language barrier really were a deterrent on the set. It gives the film a false poignancy, especially given the over-done finale. By the end of "Brother," we are left with a slightly bitter aftertaste to what is still undoubtedly one of the most spectacular American film debuts in history.

Picture Quality: 8/10
Nothing outright spectacular, but a strong video transfer from Columbia/Tristar. As I said earlier, there seems to be something missing while watching the film on DVD versus in the theater. The grandiose action sequences don't seem quite as grand, but then again, unless you're sporting a 50" Plasma TV, when do they?

Sound Quality: 8/10
There's some nice surround work on this disc, as well as solid stuff on the low frequency channel. Nice, sharp Dolby Digital audio track.

Menu: 8/10
Nothing special here. Simple structure, easy to navigate through.

Extra Features: 1/10
It's a shame that Columbia/Tristar fell far short from utilizing the DVD medium. Theatrical trailers as the only extra feature is sad for a film and director of this quality.

The Final Word:
An excellent rental, the DVD unfortunately falls well short of other discs in the genre. For Kitano fans or action fans looking for more edgy stuff, a decent addition. For the rest of you, stick with the rental store, or better yet, rent it online at cafeDVD.com.

Stephen Wong