Brother (2000)

Director:

Takeshi Kitano

Writer:

Takeshi Kitano (written by)

Release Date:

24 November 2000 (Italy)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

Tagline:

The one guy you trust to get your back when a whole city's trying to put a bullet in it.

Plot:

A Japanese Yakuza gangster is exiled to the United States. Takeshi settles in Los Angeles where his younger...

Plot Keywords:

Gangster | Yakuza | USA | Bellhop | California

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Takeshi Kitano	...	Aniki Yamamoto (as 'Beat' Takeshi)
Omar Epps	...	Denny
Kurôdo Maki	...	Ken (as Claude Maki)
Masaya Katô	...	Shirase
Susumu Terajima	...	Kato
Royale Watkins	...	Jay
Lombardo Boyar	...	Mo
Ren Ôsugi	...	Harada
Ryo Ishibashi	...	Ishihara
James Shigeta	...	Sugimoto
Tatyana Ali	...	Latifa
Makoto Ôtake	...	Chief of Police
Kôen Okumura	...	Hanaoka
Naomasa Musaka	...	Hisamatsu
Rino Katase	...	Night Club Madame
Tetsuya Watari	...	Jinseikai Boss
Ren Murakami	...	Minamino
Joy Nakagawa	...	Marina
Wanda-Lee Evans	...	Denny's Mother
Tony Colitti	...	Roberto
Koyo Into	...	Nishida
Alan Marco	...	Bellboy (as Alan Garcia)
Antwon Tanner	...	Colin
Joseph Ragno	...	Mafia Boss Rossi
Nynno Ahli	...	Oscar
Paul Feddersen	...	Limo Driver
Dan Gunther	...	Killer Waiter
Robert Covarrubias	...	Mexican Mafia Officer
Anthony Vatsula	...	Mexican Mafia Officer
Al Vicente	...	Victor's Henchman
Luis Angel	...	Victor's Henchman
Bradley Jay Lesley	...	Moose (as Brad 'The Animal' Lesley)
Lobo Sebastian	...	Yamamoto's Bodyguard
Tomas Chavez	...	Victor's Driver
Don Sato	...	Sushi Bar Owner
Hideo Kimura	...	Sushi Bar Part-Timer
Yauoi Otani	...	Sushi Bar Waitress
Tuesday Knight	...	Prostitute
Yuji Hasegawa	...	Whorehouse Customer
Chuma Hunter-Gault	...	Sly
Kool Moe Dee	...	Jack
Peter Spellos	...	Taxi Driver
Amaury Nolasco	...	Victor
Jack Ong	...	Chinese Boss
Tad Horino	...	Coffee Shop Owner
Mike Wu	...	Chinese Boss
Alvin Ing	...	Doctor
Herschel Sparber	...	Geppetti's Bodyguard
John Aprea	...	Mafia Boss Geppetti
Christopher DerGregorian	...	Mexican Mafia Hitman
Manny Perez	...	Mexican Mafia Hitman
Eddie Garcia	...	Mexican Mafia Henchman
Rainbow Borden	...	Yamomoto's Henchman
Manny Gavino	...	Yamomoto's Henchman
Hiroshi Otaguro	...	Yamomoto's Henchman
Darryl M. Bell	...	Yamomoto's Henchman
Eiji Inoue	...	Shirase's Henchman
Akira Kaneda	...	Mafia Hitman
Shoken Kunimoto	...	Ohyama
Shûhei Saga	...	Matsumoto
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Erick Carrillo	...	Mexican hitman
Miguel Mas	...	Mexican Mafia Hitman
Geoff Meed	...	Rossi's Bodyguard
Takashi Nishina
Mikage Sano
Joseph Aguilar	...	Thug 3 (uncredited)
Gary Cruz	...	Mexican Mafia Soldier (uncredited)
Noel Gugliemi	...	Mexican Mafia Soldier (uncredited)
Pat Morita	...	Guy at the poker table (uncredited)
Thomas Rosales Jr.	...	First Mexican Mafia Boss (uncredited)

Directed by
Takeshi Kitano

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Takeshi Kitano		written by

Produced by
Ann Carli	....	co-producer
Shinji Komiya	....	line producer
Masayuki Mori	....	producer: Office Kitano
Jeremy Thomas	....	producer: Recorded Picture Company
Peter Watson	....	associate producer
Takio Yoshida	....	co-producer

Original Music by
Joe Hisaishi

Cinematography by
Katsumi Yanagijima

Film Editing by
Takeshi Kitano
Yoshinori Ôta

Casting by
Robi Reed-Humes
Takefumi Yoshikawa

Production Design by
Norihiro Isoda

Art Direction by
Takayuki Nitta
Anthony R. Stabley

Set Decoration by
Teresa Visinare

Costume Design by
Darryle Johnson
Yohji Yamamoto

Makeup Department
Junko Aoki	....	makeup assistant
Pierce Austin	....	hair department head
Tomo'o Haraguchi	....	special effects makeup artist: Tokyo
Mayumi Kamata	....	makeup artist: Ms. Katase
Robert C. Mathews III	....	assistant hair stylist: Los Angeles
Michio Miyauchi	....	makeup artist
Judy Murdock	....	makeup department head: Los Angeles
P.E. 'Carmen' Osborne-Austin	....	key hair stylist: Los Angeles
Richard Snell	....	special effects makeup artist: Los Angeles

Production Management
Victor Ho	....	unit production manager
Junko Kosuge	....	assistant unit manager
Toshio Tanaka	....	unit manager
Kunihiro Yasuda	....	assistant unit manager
Shuichi Yoshizaki	....	assistant unit manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Rita Lisa Danao	....	assistant director: Los Angeles
Hirofumi Inaba	....	assistant director: Tokyo
Ed Licht	....	first assistant director: Los Angeles (as Edward Licht)
Takeshi Matsukawa	....	assistant director: Tokyo
Hiroshi Shimizu	....	assistant director
Atsushi Sunagawa	....	assistant director: Tokyo
Darrell Woodard	....	assistant director: Los Angeles

Art Department
Leonard 'Junior' Alvarez	....	labor foreman
Ayenne J. Applebaum	....	paint foreman
Jeffrey Berger	....	painter
Douglas Cumming	....	assistant art director
Chris Forster	....	construction coordinator
Joseph Genna	....	lead man
Scott Head	....	construction general foreman
Kyoko Kageyama	....	art department coordinator: Los Angeles
Ken Koide	....	assistant art director: Tokyo
Ed Martin II	....	swing gang
Chris McCann	....	propmaker
Margaret M. Miles	....	on-set dresser
Ron Resch	....	construction medic (as Ronny Resch)
Bryan Root	....	swing gang
Bryan Root	....	swing gang
Anders Rundblad	....	propmaker
Koji Shinoda	....	assistant props
Daron Smith	....	propmaker (as Daron W. Smith)
Tetsuji Tatsuta	....	property master: Tokyo
Emiko Tsuyuki	....	assistant props
Thomas R. Wagner	....	property master
Robert N. Williams	....	assistant property master

Sound Department
Dorian Cheah	....	sound effects editor
Alan Freedman	....	adr recordist
Senji Horiuchi	....	sound designer
Takako Ishikawa	....	assistant sound effects editor (as Takako Ishikawa-Temple)
Robert Jackson	....	adr supervisor (as Bob Jackson)
Bobby Johanson	....	adr recordist
Takako Kawamoto	....	assistant sound effects editor
Kraig Kishi	....	boom operator: Los Angeles
Akira Nakano	....	sound recordist
Akira Rizawa	....	sound re-recording mixer
Kenji Shibazaki	....	supervising sound editor
Mitsugu Shiratori	....	sound mixer
Mirai Ueno	....	sound assistant

Special Effects by
John C. Hartigan	....	special effects coordinator
David Waine	....	special effects coordinator: Los Angeles (as David Wayne)

Stunts
John Alden	....	stunts
Rick Avery	....	stunts
Kurt Bryant	....	stunts
Damon Caro	....	stunts
Christopher Caso	....	stunts (as Chris Caso)
Tony Cecere	....	stunts
Mark De Alessandro	....	stunts
Paul Eliopoulos	....	stunts
Masaaki Endo	....	stunts
Kenny Endoso	....	stunts
Mickey Giacomazzi	....	stunts
Al Goto	....	stunt coordinator
Buddy Joe Hooker	....	stunts
Steven Ho	....	stunts
Brian Imada	....	stunts
John Koyama	....	stunts
Will Leong	....	stunts
Clint Lilley	....	stunts (as Clint Lilly)
Frank Lloyd	....	stunts
Johnny Martin	....	stunts
John Meier	....	stunts
Eddie Perez	....	stunts
Simon Rhee	....	stunts
Jimmy N. Roberts	....	stunts (as Jimmy Roberts)
Erik Rondell	....	stunts
Thomas Rosales Jr.	....	stunts (as Tom Rosales)
Michael Runyard	....	stunts
Koichi Sakamoto	....	stunts
Spencer Sano	....	stunt performer
Frank Torres	....	stunts
David Wald	....	stunts
Danny Wong	....	stunts
Keith Woulard	....	stunts
Dick Ziker	....	stunts

Camera and Electrical Department
Roman W. Bennett	....	lighting technician: Los Angeles (as Roman Bennett)
Eric Cross	....	best boy grip: Los Angeles
Gilbert Elam	....	best boy lighting technician: Los Angeles
Roy C. Granada	....	chief lighting technician: Los Angeles
Dave Gunderson	....	grip: Los Angeles
Suzanne Hanover	....	still photographer: Los Angeles
Hiro Kakuhari	....	key grip
Takanori Kashihara	....	lighting technician
Akio Kimura	....	lighting technician
Michael Landsburg	....	grip: Los Angeles (as Mike Landsburg)
Manabu Matsumiya	....	assistant camera
Kazushige Matsuzaki	....	dolly grip
Eamon McGillicuddy	....	dolly grip: Los Angeles
Yoshinori Minami	....	dolly grip
Takahiro Mizuse	....	lighting technician
Kensuke Nakazawa	....	assistant camera
Akihiko 'Matsu' Nihonmatsu	....	first assistant camera: Los Angeles
Yukihiro Okimura	....	assistant camera
Taku Okuno	....	lighting technician: Los Angeles
Paul Ott	....	grip: Los Angeles
Andrew Robison	....	grip
Satomi Saito	....	still photographer
Mika Sogawa	....	lighting technician: Los Angeles
Hitoshi Takaya	....	lighting director
Hideki Tateno	....	gaffer
Mitsuo Watanabe	....	lighting technician
Randy Williamson	....	second assistant camera: Los Angeles
Chris Winmill	....	camera loader: Los Angeles
Lister Coleman	....	grip (uncredited)

Casting Department
Ernie Malik	....	extras casting
Cydney McCurdy	....	casting associate
Doran Reed	....	casting associate
Jessy Terrero	....	extras casting
Ulysses Terrero	....	extras casting

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Sandy Ampon	....	costume supervisor: Los Angeles
Nancy Grossi	....	set costumer: Los Angeles
Laura Guzik	....	set costumer: Los Angeles
Fumio Iwasaki	....	costume stylist

Editorial Department
Taro Kuwayama	....	color timer
Richard Lloyd	....	post-production consultant (uncredited)

Music Department
Ayame Fujisawa	....	music producer
Janice Ginsberg	....	soundtrack consultant
Tomonao Hara	....	musician: fluegelhorn solos
Joe Hisaishi	....	conductor
Joe Hisaishi	....	musician: piano solos
Soichiro Ito	....	music production coordinator
Noriko Kohyama	....	music production coordinator
Masayoshi Okawa	....	music mixer
Masayoshi Okawa	....	music recordist
Ichiro Tanaka	....	music production coordinator
Joe Hisaishi	....	music arranger (uncredited)

Transportation Department
Ben Barsky	....	driver: Los Angeles (as Benjamin Barsky)
David R. Blakely	....	driver
John De Troia	....	driver: Los Angeles (as John V. DeTroia)
Paul Feddersen	....	transportation coordinator
David Gerry	....	transportation captain (as David Thomas Gerry 'Davo')
Hugo Ocana	....	driver: Los Angeles (as Hugo R. Ocana)
Colleen Rea	....	driver

Other crew
Atsuko Ohtani Bailey	....	assistant production coordinator: Los Angeles
Julian Brain	....	key set production assistant: Los Angeles
Judy Dickerson	....	dialogue coach: Los Angeles (as Judi Dickerson)
Masaaki Endo	....	set production assistant: Los Angeles
Neal Allen Fischer	....	production assistant
Robert Hepburn	....	set medic (as Robert 'Sarge' Hepburn)
Knox Hughes	....	assistant: Ann Carli (as John Hughes)
Yuko Irobe	....	assistant production accountant
Junichi Iyori	....	assistant: Takeshi Kitano
Jocelyn Jones	....	assistant: Jeremy Thomas
Melody Korenbrot	....	unit publicist
Harlem Logan	....	set production assistant: Los Angeles (as Harlem F. Logan)
Diana Lui	....	production coordinator
Hiroo Minami	....	translator
Chiyo Miyakoshi	....	script supervisor
Yori Mochizuki	....	production assistant: Los Angeles
Diana Leigh Myers	....	location manager: Los Angeles
Natsuko Nezu	....	production accountant
Troy Nimmer	....	production secretary: Los Angeles
Richard Powell	....	assistant locations: Los Angeles
Karen Roberts	....	production accountant
Noriyasu Sato	....	script coordinator
Takae Shimizu	....	intern: production office
Suzanne St. Pierre	....	craft service
Makoto Tsugawa	....	stand-in: Beat Takeshi
Thomas R. Wagner	....	weapons
Rayshelle Willis	....	assistant accountant (as Rayshelle 'Shelle' Willis)
Dana Wisher	....	stand-in: Omar Epps

Production Companies

• Recorded Picture Company (RPC)
• Office Kitano
• Bandai Visual Company
• Fuzzy Bunny Films (I)
• Little Brother Inc.
• Tokyo FM Broadcasting Co.

Distributors

• Office Kitano (Japan and Southeast Asia)
• Recorded Picture Company (RPC)
• A-Film Distribution (2001) (Netherlands) (theatrical)
• Pentagon Pictures Sdn Bhd (2003) (Singapore) (theatrical)
• A-Film Home Entertainment (2001) (Netherlands) (video)
• Advanced (Germany)
• Bac Films (France)
• Bandai Visual Company
• Channel Neko (2007) (Japan) (TV)
• FilmFour (UK)
• Intercontinental Film Distributors (HK) (2001) (Hong Kong) (all media)
• Keyfilms Roma
• Líder Films (Argentina)
• New World Films Internacional S.A. (Spain)
• Palisades Tartan (2009) (UK) (all media)
• Sandrew Metronome Distribution (2002) (Finland) (DVD)
• Sandrew Metronome Distribution (2002) (Finland) (VHS)
• Shôchiku Eiga
• Sony Pictures Classics (2001) (USA)
• Universe Laser & Video Co. Ltd. (2002) (Hong Kong) (DVD)

Other Companies

• Aoi Studio  post-production sound services
• C.A.S.T. Security  security
• Consolidated Film Industries (CFI)  film laboratory
• Continental Far East  Dolby consultant
• Digital Sound and Picture  sound post-production
• Fisher Productions Inc.  lighting equipment supplied by
• Gypsy Grips Inc.  cranes
• J.L. Fisher  dollies
• NAC Image Technology  camera equipment supplied by
• New Japan Philharmonic Orchestra  orchestra
• Nichiei Art  titles
• Otto Nemenz International  camera equipment supplied by
• P2  publicist
• Power of Babble  loop group
• Sanyo Cutting Room  negative cutting
• Silva Screen Records  soundtrack released by (as Silva America)
• Sound One  sound post-production
• Sound Systems  sound transfer
• Sumida Triphony Hall  orchestra recorded at
• T&T Casting  casting
• T-mark  publicist
• Wonder City  music production
• Wonder Station  music mixed at
• Wonder Station  music recorded at
• Yoshikawa Casting Office  casting

MPAA:

Rated R for pervasive strong violence, language and brief nudity.

Runtime:

114 min

Country:

USA | UK | Japan

Language:

English | Japanese | Italian | Spanish

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital

Certification:

Iceland:16 | France:-16 | Canada:16+ (Quebec) | Portugal:M/16 | Italy:T | Argentina:16 | Australia:R | Finland:K-18 | Germany:18 | Hong Kong:III | Japan:R-15 | Netherlands:16 | New Zealand:R18 | Norway:18 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | Switzerland:16 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:16 (canton of Vaud) | UK:18 | USA:R (cut) | Singapore:M18 (DVD rating) | Singapore:R(A)

Filming Locations:

Little Tokyo, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Recorded Picture Company (RPC)

Trivia:

The body count is 78.

Goofs:

Continuity: Ken takes the photo of the potential blackmail victim with his right hand while his left hand is on the table. In the close-up he's holding it with both hands, and then he returns the picture with his right hand while his left hand is on the table again.

Quotes:

Mo: What are you guys gonna do?
Ken: Cut his finger off.
Mo: What happens when you cut his finger off?
Kato: Ummm... he can't sing straight anymore.
[smiles]

Movie Connections:

Featured in Los Angeles Plays Itself (2003)

Soundtrack:

Casta Diva che inargenti

The Least Interesting Of Kitano's Films, But Still Good

I am a huge fan of the brilliant cinematic genius Takeshi Kitano, his films "Hana-Bi" (1997) and "Violent Cop" (1991) are two of my all-time favorites and I also found several other Kitano films such as "Zatoichi" (2003) excellent. "Brother" of 2001 is in my opinion Kitano's weakest film up to date, which does not mean that it's bad. It is just not quite as brilliant as Kitano's other work. Kitano is once again director and leading actor, and he once again delivers a great performance in the lead.

Yakuza Aniki Yamamoto (Kitano) flees to America after his death is ordered by a Yakuza clan. Yamamoto goes to LA where his younger brother Ken is supposed to study. Instead of studying, however, Ken deals drugs with some American friends. And it doesn't take Yamamoto long to plan some drastic improvements for his little brother's gang...

Takeshi Kitano's performance is once again superb, this guy certainly is one of the greatest cinematic multi-talents who ever lived. I found the Japanese characters great in general, and if it was only for them, "Brother" would have probably almost reached Kitano's masterpieces in brilliance. I personally didn't like the American characters though. Omar Epps certainly is a good actor, but his character of Denny is just not very deep, simply the very stereotypical African American street gangster seen in two out of three cheesy Hollywood blockbusters. And that counts for the other American characters too. It wasn't actually that bad with Omare Epps, simply because he is a very good actor. Besides the flatness of the American characters, I found the movie very good. It is once again beautifully and imaginatively filmed in typical Kitano style, and it has the typical Kitano humor that I love. The movie is also very violent, so it's probably not for people who are easily offended by brutality in films. What I also really like about "Brother" is the fact that at least half of the movie is in Japanese. The Japanese characters also talk Japanese when they are in the US.

"Brother" is arguably Kitano's weakest movie, and definitely my least favorite of his movies, but that doesn't mean it's bad. We're talking about a great cinematic genius here, and "Brother" certainly is a good, suspenseful, entertaining, stylish and interesting film. In case you don't know Kitano yet, i recommend to watch "Hana-bi" or "Violent Cop" before watching this, but in case you're already familiar with Kitano "Brother" is certainly worth watching. My fellow Kitano fans should not miss this. Recommended 7/10