Black Rain (1989)
Director: Ridley Scott
Movie review
From Time Out Film Guide
Dishonoured detective Nick Conklin (Douglas) and easygoing partner Charlie Vincent (Garcia) escort a desperately ruthless yakuza from New York to Osaka. When he is snatched from under their noses, they join forces with the Japanese police to recover their man. Most of the interplay is between Conklin, under investigation back home, and his Japanese colleague Matsumoto (Takakura), who upholds group loyalty over the American's individualism. 'You must have patience', Conklin is warned by his Japanese hosts. 'Fuck patience', he retorts, and goes about cutting corners. Their quarry belongs to a counterfeiting ring which schemes to infiltrate the American economy - Japanese revenge, it would seem, for losing the war (black rain refers to radioactive fallout after Hiroshima and Nagasaki). Tiresome gags abound at the expense of the uptight Japanese detective, with Conklin revelling in language misunderstandings, and prejudices are aired until some sort of reconciliation is reached - after Matsumoto has adopted vigilante methods. Obvious stuff.Author: CM
Cast & crew
Director: Ridley Scott
Producer: Stanley R Jaffe, Sherry Lansing
Cast: Michael Douglas, Andy Garcia, Ken Takakura, Kate Capshaw, Yusaku Matsuda, Shigeru Koyama, John Spencer full cast
Genre(s): Thrillers
Duration: 125 mins
Most popular on this site
Top Stories
Has Michael Mann lost it?
Adam Lee Davies mourns the passing of a major Hollywood talent as Michael Mann's 'Public Enemies' sees the great director running on empty
Why 'Ice Age 3' is really for adults
Tom Huddleston takes a look at a selection of films which bring adult problems to a pre-teen audience
Is this Summer 2009's best film?
The French filmmaker Claire Denis speaks to Dave Calhoun about her new film, '35 Shots of Rum', a tender portrait of a father-daughter relationship in Paris
The Informant: trailer preview
Steven Soderbergh is at it again, this time with a screwball corporate caper starring Matt Damon called 'The Informant'. View the trailer here...
Rudo y Cursi: interview
Gael Garcia Bernal and Diego Luna talk to Time Out about their highly entertaining new comedy, 'Rudo y Cursi'
An open letter to Peter Morgan
Tom Huddleston penned an open letter to Peter Morgan offering some friendly dos and don'ts for the new Bond movie
Outdoor film screenings in London 2009
Derek Adams offers a guide to the best places to see films outside in London this summer
50 essential sci-fi films
With 'Star Trek' making serious waves, we thought it would be a perfect time to select 50 must-see sci-fi films










What do you think?
Post your review now