i hosted another okinawa in pop culture series for yosc today. this time we watched "sonatine" by takeshi "beat" kitano. it's about tokyo mafia who go down to okinawa to help calm down a feud going on there. the turnout for the film was half or less of last time but that's ok. i didn't watch the film ahead of time so that i would be watching something new just like everyone else. i don't think i've seen any of beat takeshi's other films. i just would watch him on tv and stuff when i lived in japan. the film was pretty good. it's a little harsh, i mean you can't watch it with everyone, at least not me, because there is some violence but it's a yakuza film, c'mon, what did you expect, soda and ice cream? well there's that too actually. i'm glad there were subtitles because when yakuza talk, it's hard for me to understand. they get angry and everything becomes a growl. i can't distinguish actual words being said sometimes, hahahahaa. but it's not all mean. during most of the film, a couple yakuza members are just laying low and try to come up with all sorts of things to pass the time. this is the most poignant part of the film. i've had a LOT of downtime growing up and even as an adult. hell, i've spent a week in okinawa with nothing to do. i know how these guys feel!