Takeshis'

I loved Sonatine and Hana-Bi, but this was incredibly tedious, I couldn't finish it.

The duality of wacky TV host Beat Takeshi and acclaimed arthouse director Takeshi Kitano has always been a big draw to his films, so a dream logic piece based on his double life sounds great on paper. Unfortunately, neither Takeshi seems to have much to say, even as fragments of each of his personalities leaps in and out of screen. The conclusion where Kitano-san finally becomes Beat Takeshi (at the seaside, of course) is pretty satisfying though. Curious where the trilogy goes next.

High on entertainment and random laughs, but ultimately empty and one-note stuff.

(Viewed on 18/01/14): Comparisons to 8 1/2 are misguided: Fellini was suffering from writer's block and 8 1/2 effectively resolved his artistic dilemma. What did Kitano do right after his self reflexive trilogy failed? He went right back to the gangster genre and made a film that was even blander than Brother. Takeshis' finds Kitano riffing playfully on his star persona and celebrity status, but the end result is a messy meta dud that's too self indulgent and goofy to register.

I found myself getting pretty frustrated by this, but I understand and appreciate what it's trying to do. Susumu Terajima holds the thing together.

i was really excited to see this, when i heard about it. i finally see it and it's just a mess, as far as i remember it.

Very unusual but hugely enjoyable for fans of Kitano's more off-beat films. Bordering on experimental at times, and highly creative in terms of editing and structure, but unlikely to appeal too much to fans of Kitano's straight yakuza movies.

I watched this film right after watching Fellini's 8 and a half and could not help seeing similarities in the 2 films.But having not enjoyed Fellini's film I didnt enjoy this one either.

Both messiness and self-indulgence can be fine on their own, but they don't mix very well.

A messy dish by the unparalleled Kitano, here extremely reflexive and nonharmonic in his presentation. Savagely humorous and offbeat, it both delights and perplex. But too rarely does it captivate, despite the odd charm of it all.