Black Rain (1989)

Two NYC cops arrest a Yakuza member and must escort him when he's extradited to Japan.

Director:

Ridley Scott

Writers:

Craig Bolotin, Warren Lewis

Stars:

Michael Douglas, Andy Garcia, Ken Takakura

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 1 win & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Michael Douglas	...	Nick Conklin
Andy Garcia	...	Charlie Vincent
Ken Takakura	...	Masahiro
Kate Capshaw	...	Joyce
Yûsaku Matsuda	...	Sato
Shigeru Kôyama	...	Ohashi (as Shigeru Koyama)
John Spencer	...	Oliver
Guts Ishimatsu	...	Katayama
Yûya Uchida	...	Nashida
Tomisaburô Wakayama	...	Sugai
Miyuki Ono	...	Miyuki
Luis Guzmán	...	Frankie (as Luis Guzman)
John Costelloe	...	The Kid (as John A. Costelloe)
Stephen Root	...	Berg
Richard Riehle	...	Crown

Storyline

Two New York cops get involved in a gang war between members of the Yakuza, the Japanese Mafia. They arrest one of their killers and are ordered to escort him back to Japan. In Japan, however, he manages to escape. As they try to track him down, they get deeper and deeper into the Japanese Mafia scene and they have to learn that they can only win by playing the game the Japanese way.

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Plot Keywords:

japan | yakuza | police chase | osaka japan | counterfeit | 

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Taglines:

An American Cop in Japan. Their country. Their laws. Their game. His rules.

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Genres:

Action | Crime | Thriller

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Certificate:

R

Did You Know?

Trivia

Rutger Hauer and Harrison Ford were considered to play Nick Conklin since they both worked with each other and Ridley Scott on Blade Runner seven years before this film.

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Goofs

During a gunfight, one or more cars explode in flames, but unless a car is fueled by propane or some other volatile fuel, it shouldn't explode since petrol is merely flammable and not volatile.

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Quotes

Matsumoto Masahiro: Perhaps you should think less of yourself and more of your group, try to work like in Japanese. I grew up with your soldiers; you were wise then. Now - music and movies are all America is good for. We make the machines, we build the future, we won the peace.
Nick Conklin: And if there was *one* of you guys who had an original idea, you'd be so tight that you couldn't even pull it out of your ass!

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Crazy Credits

The end credits begin with a Japanese kanji, which can be translated as "complete" or "end" and is sometimes used at the end of Japanese films.

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Connections

Featured in At the Movies: Black Rain/Heavy Petting/In Country/A Dry White Season/Heart of Dixie (1989)

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Soundtracks

What'd I Say
Written by Ray Charles (uncredited)
Performed by Ray Charles

User Reviews

Ridley Scott's Most Underrated Film

Black Rain (1989) Starring Michael Douglas and Andy Garcia.

Running Time: 125 min. Rated R

Black Rain stars Michael Douglas(Wall Street, Falling Down) and Andy Garcia(The Untouchables, Desperate Measures) as Detectives Nick Conklin and Charlie Vincent. One day while eating lunch at a local diner, they witness a horrific mob killing. The twist is that the killer is a dangerous gangster named Sato(Yusaku Matsuda) from Japan who is also wanted their for various other crimes. Soon after, a chase ensues and Sato is captured. The police tell Nick and Charlie that he must be returned to Japan in order to be prosecuted. When they finally get to Japan, the police there are very generous in accepting Sato, only they're not the police, they're Sato's thugs in disguise. So Nick and Charlie must go after him, but because they are foreigners, no one will help them in their investigation and they must also accept a new partner (Ken Takakura).

Filmed on location in Tokyo, Japan, Ridley Scott, who also directed Alien(1979), Blade Runner(1982) and Gladiator(2000) sets up a really dark tone for, much as he does in most of his films.

It's also surprising how low the rating is for this movie. It's a classic like so many other of Scott's films.

10/10

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Japanese

Release Date:

22 September 1989 (USA)

Also Known As:

Black Rain

Filming Locations:

1000 N. Crescent Drive, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$30,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$9,677,102, 24 September 1989

Gross USA:

$46,212,055

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$134,212,055

Company Credits

Production Co:

Paramount Pictures, Jaffe-Lansing, Pegasus Film Partners

Technical Specs

Runtime:

125 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.39 : 1