It isn't all that great, actually. Really cheesy and very predicable of how certain scenes are gonna turn play out. However, I guess that's the charm of it all, because I would consider this one of my guilty pleasures.

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

It really made me laugh, but for some moments I was tearing up because I could relate so much.

One of those movie experiences that is so good it makes you realize you've been grading everything else on a curve.

The cinematography of this film was excellent. It is a slow burner and brutal in some scenes however If you like Japanese culture you will enjoy this film. Not for gaijins :)

I got sooo bored for the first time I closed the film.

Great film - I loved every minute of it. From the settings in buildings in sleazy neighborhoods around post-war Japan to the acting which was excellent. It even had one (maybe more?) moment of humor. There is little to complain about except perhaps it was gory even by today's standards. It's difficult to remember how one things leads to the next as the plot is crafted masterfully. Before the viewer is even aware, a Gaijin (foreigner or outsider) is a part of a Japanese Yakuza family in Osaka. Despite his penchant for violence - sometimes almost senseless - the main character is humanized through a tender side manifested by his love for a woman. The film depicts a broken down Japan still reeling from the impact of World War Two. There appears to be little of the order and wealth so closely associated with contemporary Japan. The movie is an eye opener on Japanese society for those who are unaware of the depths to which Imperial Japan feel after its surrender in 1945. Well acted, great plot with a serious dark side ... what's not to like?

I was very excited to watch this movie because I loved the premise and the reviews here recommended it. Boy was I let down.The movie is slow, but not in a good way. It's not slow to immerse you in the old world of Japan, or even to give you some sort of visceral feel. It's just slow and then like clockwork something very violent happens. I don't even understand why he's so violent. There's just no soul behind anything.It is predictable, which is not the worst thing in the world but combine that with a slow pace and uncompelling characters and it's another fatal flaw.Gratuitous violence began to make the movie a bit comical.