Review of Kids Return (1996) by Graham P — 10 Dec 2008

A Takeshi Kitano film without the great man himself in a starring role, Kids Return is a look at the lives of two high school dropouts whose initial hapless forays into the adult world bring them some success, but ultimately get them into a world of trouble: After failing to find success as a pair of stand up comedians, the brash Masaru becomes a henchman to a low level Yakuza boss, whilst his friend Shinju proves to be a naturally talented boxer.

Essentially this is a coming of age piece that includes Kitano's usual combination of slapstick comedy, beautiful cinematography and sparse but efficient dialogue. The performances of both leads are subtle but well layered and the pacing, as with all of Kitano's films, is spot on with not a scene that feels wasted or extraneous.

I would have given this one an extra half a mark but for the fact that in some places this felt a little bit too saccarine and contrived for my liking, particularly in the final ten minutes and also, if I am honest I do miss the rather lackadaisical and sporadic violence that intersperses the more tranquil and reflective moments in Kitano's Yakuza features. Guess I'm just like that. This is certainly a marvellous film though.