RAINY DOG ***

This strange movie about a Japanese hitman stranded in Taiwan and saddled with a young son he didn't know he had would probably sit comfortably on a double-bill with Cassavetes' "Gloria" though this is a lot more enigmatic. It was the second film in what became known as Takashi Miike's Shinjuku Triad Trilogy and it has a slightly mystical quality you may not associate with the director. Personally there were times I found it hard to get a handle on the plot and if you are looking for a typical Miike picture you will probably be disappointed. The title, "Rainy Dog" is certainly apt since it rains here more than in almost any movie I can think of. As the mostly silent, philosophical killer Sho Aikawa is excellent and his performance should remind you of Alain Delon in Melville's "Le Samourai", (this movie is almost in the same class). It is certainly sufficiently unusual to command attention and is far from the usual run-of-the-mill Yakuza flic.