An adventure story about the former president of Yakuza Five years after his death from the total war between the Sano and Hanabishi families, Yacuzu Otomo returns to Japan to settle things once and for all.
If the action isn't especially fresh - Kitano fans will spot references to his earlier films - his talent for spare-but-impactful visuals and mean-but-funny twists is still intact.
The narrative intricacy is daunting but, for viewers willing to keep track, the pleasure lies in the way that Kitano tracks the moves as they advance to an inexorably logical climax.