is a 1998 Japanese film directed by and starring

Shinya Tsukamoto is a Japanese people, Japanese filmmaker, film producer, screenwriter, Film editing, editor, Film director, director, cinematographer, art director, production designer and actor. With a considerable cult following both domestically and abroad ...

, and co-starring

Hisashi Igawa Hisashi Igawa (井川比佐志 born 17 November 1936) is a Japanese actor who has appeared in such films as Akira Kurosawa's '' Dodesukaden'', ''Ran'' and ''Madadayo''. He starred in Abe Kōbō's production of ''The Man Who Turned Into A Stick'' ...

, Sujin Kim,

Kirina Mano The Battle of Kirina, also known as the Battle of Krina or Siege of Karina (Wiktionary:circa, c. 1235), was a confrontation between Sosso king Sumanguru Kanté and Mandinka people, Mandinka prince Sundiata Keita. Sundiata Keita's forces roundly d ...

, Takahiro Murase,

Tatsuya Nakamura is a Japanese musician, drummer and actor. After performing with several prominent punk rock bands, Nakamura rose to fame as drummer of Blankey Jet City from 1987 to 2000. In 1996, he founded his solo project Losalios, where he performs every ...

and

Kyōka Suzuki is a Japanese actress. Life and career Suzuki appeared in Shinji Aoyama's '' Mike Yokohama: A Forest with No Name'' and Yōichi Sai's ''Blood and Bones''. She won the Best Actress award at the 1998 Yokohama Film Festival for her role in ''Wel ...

. After his girlfriend commits suicide, a man (Shinya Tsukamoto) becomes embroiled in

gang warfare A gang is a group or society of associates, friends or members of a family with a defined leadership and internal organization that identifies with or claims control over territory in a community and engages, either individually or collectivel ...

attempting to obtain a gun in hopes to kill himself.

Synopsis

A few days after the suicide of his companion, Goda crosses in an alley Chisato, a girl whom he had met and saved not long before, while she was trying to throw herself under a train. But the latter, screaming at rape, the advertiser finds himself face to face with Goto and his gang. Assaulted and robbed, he is summoned by them to bring back all his money the next time. At the end of his rope, Goda decides to buy a weapon. But during the transaction, he does not notice that the weapon in question is just a simple water pistol. He then resolves to mount his own revolver with pieces of metal. He has only one obsession: to kill.

Cast

as Goda * Kirina Mano as Chisato *

as Idei * Takahiro Murase as Goto *

as Kiriko *

as Kudo

Release

''Bullet Ballet'' was first shown at the 55th Venice International Film Festival in September 1998. After the première, Tsukamoto decided to re-edit ''Bullet Ballet''. After the Venice premiere, the Japanese company There's Enterprise offered to distribute the film in Japan. As Tsukamoto was busy with other festivals and developing his new film ''

Gemini Gemini may refer to: Space * Gemini (constellation), one of the constellations of the zodiac ** Gemini in Chinese astronomy * Project Gemini, the second U.S. crewed spaceflight program * Gemini Observatory, consisting of telescopes in the Northern ...

'', he had to wait until ''Gemini'' was complete before finishing re-editing ''Bullet Ballet'' for the Japanese release. It was released in Japan on March 11, 2000. The film was shown at the 1998

Toronto International Film Festival The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF, often stylized as tiff) is one of the largest publicly attended film festivals in the world, attracting over 480,000 people annually. Since its founding in 1976, TIFF has grown to become a permane ...

which showcased Japan as their country of focus in the festival's National Cinema program. The show was titled New Beat of Japan, which included '' Ping Pong Hot Springs'', '' After Life'', ''

Beautiful Sunday ''Beautiful Sunday'' () is a 2007 South Korean crime drama film.
''Koreanfilm.org''. Retrieved 13 April 2008.

...

'', '' Happy Go Lucky'' and ''

Cure A cure is a substance or procedure that ends a medical condition, such as a medication, a surgical operation, a change in lifestyle or even a philosophical mindset that helps end a person's sufferings; or the state of being healed, or cured. The ...

''.

Reception

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'' gave the film a negative review, stating that "some may respond to the new thriller’s brooding B&W visuals and its spasmodic bursts of hammering violence, most followers of the director will see it merely as more of the same." '' Time Out'' gave the film a negative review, describing the film as "aggro art, intense, gut-felt - but also, like all Tsukamoto's work, numbingly over-stretched."

References

;Sources *

External links

* * 1998 films Japanese black-and-white films 1990s Japanese-language films 1998 crime thriller films Japanese crime thriller films Films directed by Shinya Tsukamoto Films scored by Chu Ishikawa 1990s Japanese films {{crime-thriller-film-stub