Takeshi Kitano plays the main character with intensity that leaves the viewer gasping for air. He paints a picture of a greedy, violent, self-absorbed and ruthless small-time crook whose life and the lives of those he touches are consumed by hatred, pain and violence.
Everything in this movie tastes and feels real to the point of hurting. It is not a light film, nor it is to be viewed lightly. It shows a darker bit of Japanese and Korean History from a point of an immigrant family.
Definitely one of Kitano's best performances. He's said he drew a lot from his own childhood when he built the character he plays.