This raw yet honest look at the Japanese gangland culture is a bit of a departure for director Takashi Miike who is better known for his balls-out approach when crafting his visceral productions. Having stood proud next to scenes of utter carnage and sickness in his earlier 2001 movie's 'Koroshiya 1' (Ichi the Killer) and 'Bizita Q' (Visitor Q), the opposing slackness of pace in Agitator might leave some of his newer and less ardent followers a little disillusioned.
The story focuses on two Japanese gangs, one called the Shirane and the other the Yokomizo. After a group of drunken Shirane members start some serious and humiliating trouble in a bar, the Yokomizo boys step in to deal some violent retribution for their dishonorable behavior. This starts a snow ball effect that culminates in Yokomizo Takanori, the boss of the Yokomizo gang, being shot dead in his house in front of his disabled wife. As emergency talks between the high ranking elders of each group are called in an attempt to keep the violence from escalating into a full scale war, a powerful third figure emerges from the shadowy underworld in an attempt to position himself at the head of all the gangs.
The film manages to have a super coolness that Japanese movie makers (Miike in particular) do so well with the sharp suits and gravity defying hair styles of the gang members only coming second to the nonchalant manner in which they blow holes in one another. This example is perhaps no better demonstrated than by Naoto Takenaka who plays maverick gang leader Higuchi who's intense scowl and brutal loyalty to his men are executed in a visually gritty yet inwardly smooth way.
The puzzling network of Yakuza under classes frequently leave's the viewer dazed and confused with it's array of military rankings, multiple gang levels and the typical, but clearly forgivable, bamboozling Japanese names. All this add's up to many moments that might have you wishing you had made notes as the movie had gone along.
The DVD's special features are not the dazzling array of goodies that you might have hoped for but instead a rather tame collection of trailers offer up some teasing moments from Tartan's upcoming 'Asian Extreme' label. The anamorphic wide screen presentation is a great boost to the movies visual panache but does have a rather soft edge and, at times, a slightly washed out contrast but these are no show stoppers and it would appear that the best has been made of the material available.
Although the odd unsettling scene does throw the viewer a casual glance, the slow pace and overly long running time make this a hard one to sit through in one viewing and you'll hardly be able to comprehend that you are watching a Takashi Miike movie at all.
