not as good as all the hype

Excellent but underrated film

This is a must-see and one of the best documentaries - and films - of this year.

The acting in this movie is really good.

This is another one of Takeshi Kitanos films that he wrote, directed and edited but doesn't star in. It's not quite the soft and moving film like Kikujiro, but it's not the tough and violent film like Violent Cop. It's a different kind of Takeshi Kitano film that lands somewhere else on the spectrum. It's the tale of two kids that go to high school together, an the story of how one becomes a gangster, and the other becomes a boxer. It's an interesting tale and certainly tells a story of youth feeling that pressure to succeed, and perhaps doing questionable things to do so.It starts off as a high school drama, but then slowly turns into a film that is half yakuza drama and half boxing story. The interesting thing is that there are also a few other characters we see throughout that, if i'm being honest, I don't completely know why they are there. I think it's perhaps to emphasize the idea of youths in Japan being pressured to be successful. We see a duo of comedians and a guy who is in love with a girl at a Cafe, and we see little snippets of what they are doing edited in between the main plot. It's interesting and kinda works. The relationship between the two friends really works. We see their dynamic and when they drift apart, you believe it. You also grow to like the characters, and kinda root for one, if not both of them. The ending is also pretty great, if I do say so myself. The film isn't quite a masterpiece like Sonatine, but it certainly is up there with his best works. I guess you could say that it could hold its own in the ring of Kitano films.

Shinji looks up to his friend Masaru, who doesn't seem to worry about the future nor his education... instead he spends his time pulling pranks on fellow students and teachers.They don't bother looking for a purpose in life unlike many of the other characters, who all seem to have personal agendas or desperately seeking meaning.Obviously they are failures in the eyes of overachieving Japanese society.After a series of events they eventually find their goal in life. Shinji becomes a talented boxer and Masaru is making a fast career within the local yakuza.This is a very personal and honest 'Kitano', an underdog story filled with moments of humor, melancholy, cynicism and realism. In life there are no real winners or losers, choices are made and often we fail.In the end there is a moment of genuine Kitano magic, (like in most of his movies) where in one line one of them says it all.Superb ! 9.5/10

Takeshi doesn't make me disappoint again. This type is very rare to him, but he did it well. It confirmed his high level of controlling kinds of types. The character act very naturally and the living individuality affect me deeply. Comparable with his former works, it will adjoin you more. The boxing scene is stunning. The friendship of characters is unforgettable. Here I must be honor of Jô Hisaishi(the composer of this music), because it's important parts of Takeshi's work. The music is exciting and moving. Anyway it is a very meaningful movie about youth. This work attract me to look for others of Takeshi. Because I know it's my favorite directors in Japan besides Kurosawa.

With this film Takeshi takes a look back at the past in the lives of several men who are in the same school. The two protagonists each choose their own direction: one becomes a boxer, the other joins the yakuza. The story is a reflection on how the choices a man makes can affect their lives and their relationships. As always the drama is interwoven with occasional scenes of violence, and the comedy is dark but never too depressing. Everything about Kids Return is good, and therefore another great piece of Japanse film-making.