Tough it is not as good as "Hana-bi" or his latest "Kikujiro's Summer", this film is an enthralling mix of humor, beauty, violence, aesthetic shots, character study and social criticism.<br /><br />The main character (played by Takeshi Kitano himself) is a lesser yakuza chief, who is called in to help in a gang war. The mission goes wrong, and the remaining team flees into a hiding on the seaside.<br /><br />In strong contrast to US mafia sagas, where the gangsters are risk-loving playboys or proud clansmen, the normal life of the yakuza is shown bleak, tense and boring. Killing is just a job, between jobs there is constant attention (and no time for emotions), yet the enemy still strikes unexpected. You have pover but, awaiting death, can't enjoy it.<br /><br />Unusual for a mafia film, about half of it shows the gangsters spending their time in the hiding. Yet these humorous scenes tell more about their psyche than the action part. They show men shrugging at death (pretending Russian roulette for a joke), revealing their fallibilities, not knowing how to fight boredom other than children's plays. And there is love to a woman, too.<br /><br />This happy time looks like a possible escape. It is ruined by the hitman of the opposing clan, but Takeshi doesn't let the story to run the usual society-is-stronger-than-you way. The main character escapes, and guns down the high bosses in a meeting. But this is not the lone hero plot line of Hollywood, it only serves to free the yakuza and show that he's still hopeless and burnt-out: he shoots himself on the road back to the woman.<br /><br />A common Takeshi theme is the lack of love in Japanese society (as told straight out by a teacher in "Kids Return"); its replacement with formal behavior, violence/"respect" of the stronger. You can see it in this film, although almost all characters being yakuza makes it less obvious.<br /><br />And then there are all these beautiful, sentimentalist Takeshi takes, which can make even urban jungles and industrial setting look aesthetic; and the trademark over-long cuts - which are used here to underline the tension of waiting our 'heroes' are experiencing.<br /><br />All in all, this is a must-see for those not insensitised by Holliwood. If you only look for action, all-too-obvious characters and the plot line in a movie, you'll find "Sonatine" boring.