takeshi kitano is truly the " king of all media " in japan , where he has conquered the worlds of film , television , radio , newspapers , even stand-up comedy . however , if american audiences know him at all , it is likely for his villainous role in the putrid cyberthriller johnny mnemonic . that could all change with the near-simultaneous stateside launches of two of his writing-directing-editing-acting efforts , sonatine and fireworks ( hana-bi ) . notice i wrote " could " instead of " will " or " should , " because kitano's poetic , meditative brand of filmmaking will probably be as difficult for most mainstream audiences to sit through as it is to describe ( at the showing of sonatine i attended , there were more than a handful of walkouts ) . these two films fit squarely within a genre ( in both of these cases , crime thriller ) , yet they are made in a stylized , lyrical style more befitting of avant-garde arthouse fare . the resulting works are slow and somewhat difficult , but they prove to be rewarding sits for the more open-minded viewer . in 1993's sonatine , kitano ( billed under his acting moniker " 'beat' takeshi " ) plays an aging small-time gangster dispatched by his boss to go to okinawa to help resolve a turf conflict . after an ambush , a double-cross is clearly afoot , and he and his crew of rather immature young men retreat to a seaside cabin . it is during this section that most people departed the auditorium , but it's not for the reasons one may think . although there are brief bursts of bloody violence interspersed throughout the film , what ( for lack of a better word ) " offended " was the attention to behavior that would normally be deemed too trivial to be shown onscreen . kitano spends plenty of time focusing on what these men do to keep themselves from complete boredom , such as staging mock sumo wrestling matches . it sounds kind of boring on the page ( and , apparently for some it's boring on screen as well ) , but the quirky humor of these scenes give what could easily be a tired story an unusual air of freshness and humanity . as expertly made as it is , what i found lacking in sonatine was any emotional connection , which diminished the power of the finale . the same cannot be said of kitano's most recent effort , fireworks ( hana-bi ) . in this film , kitano , in a nearly silent role , plays a former cop who takes his terminally ill wife ( kayoko kishimoto ) on an extended road trip ; at the same time , police tail him for a bank robbery he made in order to pay off a mob loan shark . much like sonatine , the film moves at a leisurely pace ; there are brief , unsettling bursts of violence ; and laughs are derived from quirky situations and behavior . but fireworks is more richly satifying to the emotions and the senses . serving as a counterpoint to the main plot is the story is of a crippled former partner ( ren osugi ) who searches for meaning through painting . his paintings ( which , not so surprisingly , are actually painted by kitano himself ) are extensively viewed in haunting wordless sequences , which provide the film with a stunning visual framework that grows increasingly ominous as the quietly poignant conclusion draws near . it is unlikely that the films of takeshi kitano will be as widely embraced by american viewers as those of hong kong directors . but in sonatine and fireworks , kitano proves to be a gifted cinematic visionary whose truly unique work deserves stateside recognition , even if that recognition comes from a fairly limited , though highly appreciative , audience . 
