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Category:    Home > Reviews > Comedy > Drama > White Collar Worker Kintaro

White Collar Worker Kintaro

 

Picture: B-     Sound: B-     Extras: C     Films: B-

 

 

The reputation of director Takashi Miike began to shine in the art house circuit, which was the case when we looked at his Dead or Alive films a while ago.  A focus on Japanese Mafia-organized gangsters (Yakuza) remains, but gets twisted here.  The title character (originally known as Sarariiman Kintaro or Salaryman Kintaro in its original theatrical release, played here by Katsunori Takahashi) goes from being a biker to businessman in Miike’s 1999 comedy/drama White Collar Worker Kintaro.

 

Not as symbolic as some of his other work we have looked at, the opening of warriors in battle turns into men and their sons competing against each other in a silly race where the legs of each father and son team are tied together, making them hop (or is that limp) to the finish line.  This already announces Miike as intending to be less kinetic than usual.  However, the story of how competing companies are trying to put another construction company out of business.  Kintaro will be back in the business of getting his hands dirty before long.  Not as clichéd as it could have been, it also avoids melodrama, a plus for Miike.

 

The anamorphically enhanced 1.85 X 1 image here is a bit better than that on the three DVDs from the Dead or Alive set.  Though Kino On Video had problems finding the best prints possible, Pathfinder has had a bit more luck in this case.  The cinematography by Hideo Yamamoto is on the bright side, also emphasizing the largeness of the business world, corrupt or not.  The Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo is not bad and offers Pro Logic surrounds with Japanese dialogue only and optional subtitles.  Extras include stills, biography text on the DVD and an essay by Tom Mes that is not.  That is not much, but the film is better than expected, encouraging us to move onto the next Miike films from Pathfinder.

 

 

-   Nicholas Sheffo


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