out of 10. American film critic Roger Ebert rated it three stars out of four, citing its unusual approach toward serenity and brutality, calling it "a Charles Bronson Death Wish movie so drained of story, cliché, convention and plot that nothing is left, except pure form and impulse." Jaime N. Christley of Slant Magazine gave the film a perfect four star rating. David Stratton of The Movie Show called Hana-bi "an unclassifiable film" and "quite extraordinary," with co-host Margaret Pomeranz stating "I was ultimately so moved by it. It did what cinema is meant to do, for me anyway, and that's take me on a journey that is mine, that ultimately ends up inside me, in my heart." Stratton concluded that Hana-bi is "hard to describe to audiences, but all I can say is: Go and see it. It's great." The duo both awarded the film five stars out of five. The film is included in the book 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die. The Japanese filmmaker Akira Kurosawa cited this movie as one of his 100 favorite films. References External links Hana-bi at the Japanese Movie Database (in Japanese) Hana-Bi at Rotten Tomatoes 1997 films 1997 crime drama films Japanese crime drama films 1990s Japanese-language films Japanese neo-noir films Yakuza films Films directed by Takeshi Kitano Golden Lion winners European Film Awards winners (films) Best Film Kinema Junpo Award winners Films scored by Joe Hisaishi 1990s Japanese films