Violent Cop (1989)

A violence prone police officer discovers that his colleague is trafficking drugs.

Director:

Takeshi Kitano

Writer:

Hisashi Nozawa (original writer)

Stars:

Takeshi Kitano, Maiko Kawakami, Makoto Ashikawa

3 wins & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Takeshi Kitano	...	Azuma (as Beat Takeshi)
Maiko Kawakami	...	Akari
Makoto Ashikawa	...	Kikuchi
Shirô Sano	...	Yoshinari
Sei Hiraizumi	...	Iwaki (as Shigeru Hiraizumi)
Mikiko Otonashi	...	Iwaki's Wife
Hakuryû	...	Kiyohiro
Ittoku Kishibe	...	Nito
Ken Yoshizawa	...	Shinkai
Hiroyuki Katsube	...	Deputy Police Chief Higuchi
Noboru Hamada	...	Chief Detective Araki
Yuuki Kawai	...	Detective Honma
Ritsuko Amano	...	Honma's Fiancee
Tarô Ishida	...	Detective Tashiro
Katsuki Muramatsu	...	Deputy Commissioner Anan

Storyline

Detective Azuma is a Dirty-Harry style rogue cop who often uses violence and unethical methods to get results. While investigating a series of drug-related homicides, Azuma discovers that his friend and colleague, Iwaki, is supplying drugs from within the police force. After Iwaki is murdered and Azuma's sister is kidnapped, he breaks all the rules to dish out his particular form of justice.

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Plot Keywords:

violence | drugs | police | detective | police officer | 

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Genres:

Action | Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Release Date:

16 July 1999 (USA)

Also Known As:

Violent Cop

Filming Locations:

Kanagawa-Shinmachi, Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan

Box Office

Gross USA:

$1,960, 16 May 1999

Company Credits

Production Co:

Bandai Media Department, Shochiku-Fuji Company

Technical Specs

Runtime:

103 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

As Kitano's debut film, rumor has it no members on the set had scripts, and Kitano had everything Improv.

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Quotes

Nito: I'm Nito. Won't you come in?
Azuma: Come in? A restaurant with dope-pushers and killers?
Nito: Pardon?
Azuma: You know what I mean. Where's Kiyohiro?
Nito: Kiyohiro? Who's he?
Azuma: Your assassin.
Nito: Look ... if you want to question me, get a warrant first.
[Shinkai tucks a bribe into Azuma's jacket pocket]
Shinkai: Our gift.
[Nito peers closely.]
[...]

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Crazy Credits

There are no opening credits beyond the title.

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Alternate Versions

When the film was released in Swedish cinemas in 1992, it was censored with a little more than one minute for violence, the cuts were made in the following scenes:

• The policeman getting assaulted before he gets his head crushed by a baseball bat.
• The scene where Azuma assaults Hazishume on the toilet, and the finger cutting sequence.
• The following cuts are when Azuma assaults the killer in the locker room and a bloody execution scene at the end.

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Connections

Referenced in Sonatine (1993)

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Soundtracks

Gnossienne No.1
(1890)
Main theme is an electronic variation of the above title by Erik Satie

User Reviews

Another Kitano-masterpiece!

Yes, it´s true: all the real great movies of the 1990s seem to be produced in the land of the rising sun! This dark cop thriller is no exclusion, because "Violent Cop" is suspense-packed, dramatic, sinister - and the actors don´t say a word too much! The dark poetry often reminded me on the films of Paul Schrader or Abel Ferrera as well as the visual brilliance and the excellent cinematography this Japanese gem contains! And, of course, main actor Takeshi Kitano is the new God of Eastern cinema! Masterpieces like "Brother" or "Hana Bi" blew my mind, and his performance of the emotional broken cop is powerful and amazing! A highly recommended film!!!