How Long Is “Violent Cop”?

Television comedian, author of a number of books, and star in such films as Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawerence, Takeshi Kitano stepped behind the megaphone for this two-fisted crime thriller after yakuza flick auteur Kinji Fukasaka walked off the project. Police detective Azuma (Kitano) is loose cannon Dirty Harry-like cop who is constantly in hot water with his superiors. At the film's outset, Asuma encounters a group of high school kids beating up an old man. Later that night, he pays a visit to the ringleader's middle-class home and lands a fist square in the kid's face. When he discovers a man in bed with his mentally feeble sister, Akari (Maiko Kawakami), he thrashes the guy. Azuma's crime-world double is a yakuza assassin (Ryu Haku) who's running drugs. Later, Azuma learns that not only is his best friend and partner, Iwaki (Sei Hiraizumi), selling drugs to this gangland thug, but his sister has been kidnapped and coked up by the same creep.