Takashi Miike's loose adaptation of the PS2 game "Yakuza" is definitely an odd duck. It defies most formula conventions and delivers a uniquely Miike experience. Reminiscent of City of Lost Souls before it and Crows Zero after it, Like A Dragon has as many laughs as it does bullets. Combining bombastic action with a violent sense of humor, the film almost seems to want you to hate it, but it's hard not to like what amounts to be one of the most twisted action comedies in recent memory. A gangster fresh out of jail, his bat-wielding and bugnuts crazy arch-nemesis, a lost little girl, two Bonnie and Clyde posers, a pair of idiot bank-robbers, a mysterious Korean hit-man and plenty of other characters inhabit one hot night in a fictional district of Tokyo with two missing women and ten billion yen at stake. If you're expecting a deathly serious action fest, you had better look elsewhere. Relying on vicious physical gags and some truly inspired comic timing, Miike mixes in dynamic camera-work with colorful imagery to continuously rebel against traditional action conventions. This is definitely not one of Miike's most profound works, but it is certainly one of his most undeniably fun.
Review of Ryû ga gotoku: Gekijô-ban
