Picture: Anamorphic Widescreen. The picture is exceptionally crisp and clear, but I was surprised to see that Kitano used such a basic color palette (lots of drab, earthy tones) for most of this film. However, it’s a conscious choice by the director and not a poor transfer as evidenced by the final scenes and their lush set design and costuming.

Sound: Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround, Japanese language with optional English, Japanese and Korean subtitles. I don’t speak Japanese, but the sound effects and soundtrack were very vibrant, and the music I mentioned earlier is ever present with the excellent sound design and presentation on this disc. The translation seems to be spot on and the subtitles are large and easy to read without distracting from the picture.

Extras: There is an entire second disc of just Extras, but alas, not a subtitle in sight, so I am limited in my descriptions of what these contain. There is a Photo Gallery, several Television Spots and Trailers for the film, a very interesting Making of Featurette which utilizes branching DVD technology in order to take you even deeper into the movie with several Cast and Crew Interviews and a series of Video Production Notes which document the day to day events on the set. Overall, these are some very nice extras, which would have been FANTASTIC if only they’d have gotten someone to translate them.

Conclusion: If this movie doesn’t make you say Takeshi Kitano is the Man, then I’m afraid there is no hope for you. Certainly not everyone got into his bleak and violent takes on the Japanese underworld, but surely this is a film that everyone can stand up and cheer for. Yes, this movie has violence and yes, this movie has blood but it also has a happy ending that leaves you feeling nothing short of euphoric. So, please, get this DVD and remember what you liked about watching movies in the first place.