If Dirty Harry is a bad cop story full of twists, turns, strong characters, and sharp action sequences, Violent Cop is its inverse. The padding is ludicrous, leaning on lingering shots and grueling mundanity like characters walking from one location to another. Unlike the melancholic air of Hana-bi, Violent Cop doesn’t have a unique atmosphere where its measured pacing can add to the viewing experience. It’s endless meandering with little character insight, compelling writing, or even style. Even Takeshi Kitano‘s violent outbursts are muted and cheapened with questionable editing cuts that obscure impact, weakening any claim to satirical, societal criticism.

There’s so much contradiction between the assumed intent and filmmaking on display in Violent Cop. If you’re throwing out the rulebook, there ought to be a purpose for it. Otherwise, you just end up with a compromised experience indistinguishable from incompetence. Incredibly dull. I’m being harsh because I fully believe Takeshi Kitano is an intelligent, daring creative, but I did not find that demonstrated here.

(Watched July 18, 2017)