In my exploration of Takashi Miike's Black Society Trilogy I now arrive at the series second entry 1997's Rainy Dog, which is a rather drastic departure from its predecessor, Shinjuku Triad Society (review here), and indeed, from most of the rest of Miike's oeuvre. Playing like a cross between Sabu and Dead or Alive 2, Rainy Dog proves that Miike's typical psychotic violence and outrageous visuals are just icing on top of an already rich cake, and that he's perfectly capable of creating a powerful, stunning, shocking and moving film that's as quiet and meditative as most of his others are (pleasantly) loud and frenetic.

The story of Rainy Dog, much more linear than that of Shinjuku Triad Society, follows Yuji (Sho Aikawa, who has one of the coolest names on the planet), an outcast yakuza living in Taipei who performs hits for a local gang boss. One day, a woman appears at his home with a child in tow. The boy, Ah Chen, is his son, she tells him and at that he's Yuji's responsibility now. She barely has time to tell Yuji that the little fellow is mute too, before she hops into a cab and is driven away sobbing.

Yuji, quite unready to deal with the responsibility of having a son, simply leaves the cute little kid out in the rain, where he sits, patiently waiting for his father. As the days pass, Ah Chen begins following Yuji everywhere, from a hit to when Yuji is being chased by a mysterious "Pursuer" (Tomorowo Taguchi, who seems to be making a habit of exposing himself in Miike's productions), who we learn has been trailing Yuji for three years, presumably ordered to kill him for whatever wrong forced him to leave Japan.

As time passes, Yuji eventually warms up to the kid, at least as much as he is able, and allows him to come into his house when it rains. Since Miike's depiction of Taipei is of a place assaulted by an almost perpetual torrential downpour, this happens quite often I suspect, though we don't dwell on it too much.

It's not long until Yuji is out on another assignment, but right as he is preparing to pull his weapon, he hears a clap of thunder which causes him to postpone the hit because of his superstitious avoidance of being out in the rain. Seeking refuge from the inclement weather, Yuji ends up hiding out in a whorehouse, which effectively strands Ah Chen in the street outside (the scrupulous brothel owner won't let the kid in). As Ah Chen makes friends with a lonely stray dog, so does Yuji, inside, befriend Lily, a young prostitute who dreams of leaving the rain-soaked Taipei for anyplace better.

After the night has passed, Yuji sets out again (with Ah Chen trailing him, naturally) and completes the assignment, which proves quite fortuitous for him, as the men he's hit happened to be carrying with them a small fortune in dirty money. He takes this cash and returns to the brothel, where he offers Lily the chance to escape Taiwan with him, if she'll be willing to take Ah Chen once they're off the island. Unfortunately, their rather simple quest is complicated by the fact that Yuji's victim's gang is naturally quite angry with Yuji for killing its leader, and so is out for revenge. On the run from the syndicate's hit men, the three begin to bond and become a family of sorts. Whether they will survive long enough for this to matter, though becomes an issue when the chase forces Yuji and his 'family' to venture out into the danger of the rain-drenched streets of Taipei.

So, it looks like Miike-san has hit yet another home run, though it's a quieter and more subdued one. Despite the lack of the director's trademark hyperbolic violence, the film is nevertheless a very 'Miike' production: family, outsiders, loneliness, homosexuality, the moon, and birds - which are all trademark Miike fascinations, all factor into the story. While it may shock some that Rainy Dog is so subdued in its style, the film nevertheless has Miike written all over it, and like all the other work I've seen from him, is a powerful and beautiful film worthy of the attention of anyone who loves great cinema.

On that note, Artsmagic presents Rainy Dog in a fine package that should enhance anyone's enjoyment of the film, though it will prove particularly enticing to the true cinematic connoisseur. Things start off with a nice 1.85:1 anamorphic transfer that looks quite spectacular. I can't recall any scratching or grain in the entire film, and, aside from a few scenes which look to be a little under-lit (which is certainly no fault of Artsmagic's), the transfer is breathtaking in spots, capturing absolutely perfectly the gorgeous, verdant emeralds of the well-watered plants growing along the city's streets. Audio is equally good, with the sounds of the torrential downpour and sharp gunshots all faithfully reproduced. Subtitles for the dialogue, which is in mostly Mandarin and a little Japanese, are professional, so it seems that Artsmagic has ironed out the one kink it had in its early stages.

As for extras, Artsmagic provides its usual cornucopia, starting off with stills advertising upcoming releases (just the three Black Society Trilogy films), biographies/filmographies for the film's actors and Miike, and two Rainy Dog theatrical trailers.

Shinjuku's interviewees are all back again for Rainy Dog's interview supplements, which means we get a talk with Yasushi Shimamura, Miike's editor, and two separate interviews with Miike himself. Both of these Miike interviews (totaling 30 minutes between them) are interesting, if not quite as engaging as those on the Shinjuku disk, with Miike discussing his thoughts on this film and on moviemaking in general.

Finally, we get a commentary track by the always-reliable and informative Tom Mes. As usual, Mes discusses the various themes and symbols present in the film (I never would have thought Yuji's sunglasses had such symbolic significance) and how the film relates to the rest of the Black Society Trilogy and to Miikeâs body of work as a whole. As always, Mes comes off as personable and likeable, and ends up sounding like a guy you'd probably like to have had for high school English. All in all it's a fun track, and it should be considered required listening for anyone interested in the cinematic genius of Takashi Miike.

So, once again, we have another victory both for Artsmagic and for Takashi Miike: Miike has succeeded in creating yet another extraordinary film, and Artsmagic has given it appropriately loving treatment. Will all of the above similarly apply to Ley Lines, the Black Society Trilogy's conclusion? We'll see in the coming days, though I already have a sneaking suspicion that yes, it will.

Each of the films in the Black Society Trilogy are available individually or in a nifty digi-pak box set, click the links below for more info

Black Society Trilogy Boxset
Shinjuku Triad Society
Rainy Dog
Ley Lines