Boiling Point (1990) [Film Review]

Boiling Point; or, It’s not a Home Run

     Playing in such a dusty place… What a bunch of idiots!
Boiling Point marks Takeshi Kitano’s second directorial feature. Although Violence Cop (1989) and Sonatine (1993) gained popularity in the West, Boiling Point somehow drifted through unnoticed by the public. Nevertheless, it is still Kitano’s movie with all the recognisable trademarks of the director.

Release Info

Directed by: Takeshi Kitano Starring: Yurei Yanagi, Dankan, Takeshi Kitano, Yuriko Ishida, Eri Fuse

Language: Japanese Original Title: 3-4x10月 Runtime: 97 min

Synopsis
Masaki (Yurei Yanagi) is a player at a local baseball team. The boy is phlegmatic and inattentive but he stays out of trouble. However, he is attacked at a gas station by a yakuza member. Masaki seeks help at his baseball coach/former gangster, Iguchi. However the mentor’s intervention only brings further retaliation. Iguchi is badly beaten up by the yakuza. In an act of revenge, Masaki and his fellow teammate, Kazuo (Dankan) go to Okinawa to buy weapons with which they will kill the gangsters. While on Okinawa, they encounter Uehara (Takeshi Kitano) who turns out to be a sociopath desiring to settle the score with his local superiors.

Play Ball!
The original title of Boiling Point is actually 3 to 4x October which refers to the team’s score in the movie. Similarly to Kitano’s other productions from the 1990s, Boiling Point is also packed with black humour and unconventional narrative style.

To be honest, the movie feels like a collection of WTF moments. While watching it, you will learn how to (repeatedly) knock someone unconscious, how to kill a military officer in broad daylight, and how to smuggle weapons through airport service. Boiling Point seems to be lighter in its mood than Violent Cop, but it still contains nihilistic undertones about the cycle of violence and fragility of life.

That’s Takeshi Kitano for you. You know you should not be laughing at certain drastic moments, but you just can’t help yourself. I guess my favourite scene is the one in which Masaki tries to get a handgun to work, but he accidentally fires a bullet through a car windshield.

With regard to performances, Yurei Yanagai and Dankan really carry the film with their performances. Takeshi Kitano is, as always, too cool for school but I believe he did much better in Sonatine (1993) and Hana-bi (1997). If you are a fan of Satoshi Miki’s movies, then you will spot his wife, Eri Fuse in a supporting role. In addition, this film marked the debut of the wonderful Yuriko Ishida. She was only 20 years old!

Recommendations
If you are looking for low-key Kitano without too much blood, but a high level of black comedy, then Boiling Point is the movie for you. If you enjoy yakuza vibes, then give it a try. I’m surprised that the yakuza did not go after Kitano for the unfavourable portrayal of gangster life in Boiling Point. I guess they only hate Juzo Itami’s Minbo (1992).Overall score: 7/10

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