Black Rain (1989)

Directed by Ridley Scott. Starring Michael Douglas, Ken Takakura, Andy García, Kate Capshaw, Yûsaku Matsuda, Shigeru Kôyama, Tomisaburô Wakayama, John Spencer. [R]

Corrupt NYC cop Douglas and young partner Garcia arrest Yakuza killer Matsuda on their turf, and have to escort him to Osaka, Japan. When the criminal naturally gets away after arriving, Douglas is forced to venture deep into the Japanese underworld to track him down. Slick, stylish, well-crafted action noir; photographed by Jan De Bont, who must have known exactly what director Scott wanted since numerous interior and nighttime shots look at a glance like they could have been lifted from Blade Runner. Other than the setting, however, there’s nothing new to the story, which is a shame, since there was an opportunity to explore cultural misunderstandings beyond the clichéd “Japanese police have strict rules while American visitor plays by his own rules” approach. The characters tend to be one-note (or borderline unnecessary in the case of Capshaw’s knowledgeable club hostess) despite adequate buddy-cop rapport between Douglas and local detective Takakura. Looks great, moderately entertaining, but lacks definition and vibrancy. Dedicated to Matsuda’s memory, who died of cancer shortly after production wrapped.

66/100