Fireworks

Released Mar 20, 1998

1h 43m

Crime

Drama

List

96%

Tomatometer

24 Reviews

92%

Audience Score

10,000+ Ratings

Nishi (Beat Takeshi) is a beleaguered Japanese police officer. His wife, Miyuki (Kayoko Kishimoto), is suffering from leukemia, and his partner, Horibe (Ren Ôsugi), is paralyzed after gangsters violently attacked him. Nishi is fed up, and wants to give up his job in order to be with Miyuki. To do so, he is forced to borrow money from the Yakuza, and then, to clear his debt, he robs a bank. The Yakuza, however, are not pleased so easily, and they continue to hound Nishi for more money.

Read More

Read Less

Watch on Fandango at Home

Premiered Jun 04

Buy Now

Fandango at Home

Prime Video

Rent Fireworks on Fandango at Home, Prime Video, or buy it on Fandango at Home, Prime Video.

Jaime N. Christley

Slant Magazine

Kitano uses his own face as a blank slate with which to sketch a complicated human being.

Rated: 4/4

Jul 7, 2004

Full Review

Roger Ebert

Chicago Sun-Times

Takeshi Kitano, who made it, must be very serene or very angry; only extreme states allow such a narrow focus.

Rated: 3/4

Jan 1, 2000

Full Review

Russell Smith

Austin Chronicle

Rated: 4/5

Jan 1, 2000

Full Review

Panos Kotzathanasis

Asian Film Vault

Kitano directs an exquisite movie, where his trademark violence is toned down by scenes of calm beauty, with the paintings, the scenery and Joe Hisaishi's music being the foremost elements of this characteristic

Dec 1, 2019

Full Review

Ray Pride

Newcity

The maverick Japanese master filmmaker's haunting, gorgeous pluperfectly balanced elegy to art and conjugal love is also a brilliant action painting of the wages of extravagant violence. (And absurdly, brutally funny, as well.)

Rated: 10/10

Feb 11, 2019

Full Review

Laura Clifford

Reeling Reviews

Released on blu ray for the first time in the U.S., Film Movement's disc features a glorious looking HD digital restoration of the film.

Rated: A-

Sep 18, 2017

Full Review

Read all reviews

Aender S

Takeshi Kitano's best and one of my all-time favourites. I particularly like the music from this film.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

04/16/24

Full Review

DanTheMan 2

Takeshi Kitano's approach toward serenity and brutality in Hana-Bi is one of lyrical beauty, an extraordinary piece of profoundly moving artistry, one of pure form and incredible impulse in all its hauntingly gorgeous glory. Kitano lays his emotions bare, his face a blank canvas, minimal dialogue but with a hypnagogic stare that speaks a thousand times louder than words, he is a broken man at the end of his rope full of futile anger, quiet acceptance and utmost defiance. The whole film is unclassifiable but oh so richly satisfying with violence coming in sudden bursts during a man's journey to rediscover the joy of being. Kitano's works of art combined with Joe Hisaishi's music bringing out so much pain and sheer magnificence is why Hana-Bi works so well, Takeshi Kitano, you have my heart.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/04/24

Full Review

acsdoug D

What am I missing? Everyone seems to love this movie. I found it dull and disjointed.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

05/14/23

Full Review

andrey k

What a marvelous movie; an unusual drama that has elements of graphical violence, lyrical beauty, black comedy and all this wrapped up in an existential tale of a man's and his family drama. A powerful but too grim story.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

Full Review

steve c

Crime: check. Drama: check. You forgot the (right amount of) Comedy that made this film even better. Kitano wrote a great film for himself to star in. Just watch it.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

03/30/23

Full Review

r 9

There's greatness in there, for sure, but 'Fireworks' (or, the better title, 'Hana-bi') drags on for too long. I was with it for the first 45-55 minutes, but the final portion of the film really dragged for me; aside from a few moments, it kinda just repeats the same sorta scenes over and over. Like, personally, I got it... needed a bit more to it, in my opinion. There are some very good performances, no doubt. Takeshi Kitano is the obvious star of the show, though I was also impressed by Ren Osugi - who is just as excellent as the aforementioned writer, producer and director of this 1997 flick. The support cast are solid, while everything onscreen looks neat too. I did like this overall, but I can't say it hit me as much as it evidently has for others. Worth a watch, either way.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

Full Review

Read all reviews

Post a rating

Takeshi Kitano

Director

Takeshi Kitano

Yoshitaka Nishi

Kayoko Kishimoto

Miyuki, Nishi's wife

Ren Ôsugi

Horibe

Susumu Terajima

Nakamura

Tetsu Watanabe

Tesuka

Show Less Cast & Crew

Show More Cast & Crew

47%

79%

Brother

92%

89%

Sonatine

75%

72%

Jerry and Tom

14%

31%

Gloria

50%

52%

Phoenix

Discover more movies and TV shows.

View More

Gareth Evans’ Five Favorite Films

Five Favorite Films with Moby

"Iron Man" Robert Downey Jr. on Tony Stark

View more photos

Synopsis

Nishi (Beat Takeshi) is a beleaguered Japanese police officer. His wife, Miyuki (Kayoko Kishimoto), is suffering from leukemia, and his partner, Horibe (Ren Ôsugi), is paralyzed after gangsters violently attacked him. Nishi is fed up, and wants to give up his job in order to be with Miyuki. To do so, he is forced to borrow money from the Yakuza, and then, to clear his debt, he robs a bank. The Yakuza, however, are not pleased so easily, and they continue to hound Nishi for more money.

Director: Takeshi Kitano
Screenwriter: Takeshi Kitano
Distributor: Milestone
Genre: Crime, Drama
Original Language: Japanese
Release Date (Theaters): Mar 20, 1998, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Sep 26, 2017
Box Office (Gross USA): $413.5K
Runtime: 1h 43m
Sound Mix: Dolby, Surround
Aspect Ratio: 35mm

Most Popular at Home Now