Hell Dogs

Nice cinematography and story.

The characters are well developed and you really understand their motivation and why they are acting like that, they are also pretty different with different life stories that are very well acted out.

The violent scenes are very well masked-up so they don't seem that gritty nevertheless you manage to have the whole story.

I really liked the connection between the two leads, if was believable.

Nice soundtrack, it really manage to communicate the tension in a very subtle way. I would definitely look for the scores.

The twist at the end was interesting, I even had a moment " would he or wouldn't he do it"

I tuned into this film because of netflix. I I consider myself a connoisseur of asian films it could have been just another straight justice story but it's emaculate filming and performances separate it. The story of an undercover cop catching out the criminals is one thing , The ending wasn't fleshed out enough to have the emotional impact expected. The story of this film is not difficult to understand but the film wants you to think it is. If I had to complain it would be against its runtime. 2 hrs and 17 minutes is madness!! It still works however and is still worth a watch. Despite all its downfalls it's still an incredibly strong film.

The film is not easy-to-digest popcorn entertainment, however. I was often on the edge of my seat, not only for the many hardcore action scenes staged for maximum blood-spattering and bone-crunching impact but also to figure out what was going on as characters rattled off reams of exposition.

The setting does not resemble that of a typical yakuza film, where low-level hoodlums chow down on convenience store food and run their scams out of hole-in-the-wall offices.

The film delivers mayhem with punch and panache at a blistering pace, though the two main protagonists sometimes escape certain death with what seems to be nothing but willpower.

The idea of going undercover to get a job done is not new, in American cinema it probably goes back at least to Undercover Agent (1939). Police procedurals being popular, almost every other country on the planet has played with this genre also, and it is especially popular in Asia. Masato Harada is a senior director with decades of experience in Japan and this appears to have been his pet project. References in the film show that Harada was very familiar with the American "film noir" (as above), and in many ways Hell Dogs is almost an homage. That said, while direction and acting is sharp, and the action scenes razor-sharp, my concerns are the same ones mentioned in the overseas reviews. Running over 2 hours is just too long; long scenes of exposition with heavy dialog; long distances between action scenes; and so many characters to keep track of that the viewer gets the sense a pop quiz may be coming. Tighter editing would have helped. ((Designated "IMDb Top Reviewer." Please check out my list "167+ Nearly-Perfect Movies (with the occasional Anime or TV miniseries) you can/should see again and again (1932 to the present))

I was very skeptical about this movie because I was not familiar with Japanese movies. I am very glad that I have watched it.

Intriguing plot and amazing cast! It kept me on edge from time to time. Background music was well done and perfect..

The story is about loyalty, betrayal, revenge, love. If you like these types of movies, you will feel right at home. Story pacing is good. Don't expect mindless bang bang like other reviewer or your will be disappointed.

To be honest, I am glad that I have watched it. I have again witnessed that for foreign movies, IMDB rating is not something to rely on.