As it celebrates its 35th anniversary, Hasitha Fernando looks at the story behind Ridley Scott’s Black Rain…
In the late 80’s the pairing of Ridley Scott and Michael Douglas was akin to a match made in heaven. And that’s exactly what happened with the stylish neo-noir actioner Black Rain which was shot on location in Osaka, Japan. But things, of course, didn’t go smoothly during the course of production. This is that story…
The plot was originally supposed to be the story of Beverly Hills Cop II
Ridley Scott is a filmmaker that requires no introduction. Over the years the uber-talented director irrevocably altered the sci-fi genre with seminal classics like Alien and Blade Runner in the 80s, crafted a landmark feminist film with Thelma & Louise in the 90s and brought back sword-and-sandal epics with Gladiator in the 2000s. The guy’s a master of his craft and one of the finest visual storytellers of Hollywood. Period. However, following the success of Alien and Blade Runner, Scott experienced a string of financial and critical failures and it was with this stylish, neo-noir actioner that he made a comeback that somewhat cemented his reputation.
Scott always possessed an innate fascination with the Japanese culture and its aesthetics – as evidenced in Blade Runner – so it came as no surprise that he was naturally drawn to Craig Bolotin and Ryan Lewis’ script which centered around an American cop in modern-day Osaka having problems with the Yakuza. Ironically though, this was supposed to be the original story for Beverly Hills Cop 2 until they changed direction and went with a different story under the direction of Scott’s brother Tony. RoboCop helmer Paul Verhoeven was originally attached to direct the film but due to the numerous production delays he left to direct Total Recall and Ridley Scott ended up bagging the gig.
Michael Douglas’ involvement with the film received much publicity
The late 80’s was the era that was dominated by Michael Douglas. Following the success of 1984’s romantic adventure Romancing the Stone, which he also produced, Douglas starred in the psychosexual thriller Fatal Attraction in 1987 which received much praise both critically and commercially. That same year he took on the role that he’d be remembered by for the rest of his career – Gordon Gekko in Wall Street. Douglas deservingly won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his stunning portrayal of the ruthless business tycoon.
Two years following his Oscar win the actor was given the script for Black Rain and enthused by what he read, he handed it to producers Sherry Lansing and Stanley R. Jaffe, whom he collaborated with on Fatal Attraction. After Lansing and Jaffe came on board the project finally started moving forward. Prior to its release Black Rain received much publicity as it was Douglas’s first movie since his Oscar winning role in Wall Street.
Shooting in Japan proved to be a most problematic affair
Shooting in Japan proved to be a troublesome affair for Ridley Scott, due to the high production costs and the excessive bureaucratic wrangling his crew had to engage in for filming on location in Osaka, Japan. Due to the strict firearm policies that were in place within the country the production had a tough time using prop firearms since they were prohibited from firing blank ammunition. The situation got so bad that at one point Scott had to uproot the entire production and leave Japan to complete the final climax in Napa Valley, California but this early departure brought forth an additional set of problems like obtaining visas for the Japanese cast members.
To partly remedy this issue Scott had to replace some of the Japanese bit players with lookalikes whilst others were cut out entirely from the movie. Some props and vehicles even had to be duplicated before being sent to Los Angeles. Due to the myriad changes in production the original DOP Howard Atherton even departed the projected out of sheer frustration and was replaced by future Speed helmer Jan de Bont. Atherton, however, remained credited as “Additional Photography” in the film’s credits.
Black Rain was the first collaboration between Ridley Scott and Hans Zimmer
Similar to the legendary collaboration that Steven Spielberg has had with John Williams over the past which has yielded such gems like Jaws, Indiana Jones, Schindler’s List and Jurassic Park the collaboration between Ridley Scott and Hans Zimmer too had resulted in some truly magical outputs like Thelma & Louise, Gladiator, Black Hawk Down and Matchstick Men. But the start of this successful collaboration began with none other than this very film. The score was orchestrated and conducted by Shirley Walker who went on to create the music for the critically acclaimed Batman: The Animated Series later on. In addition to the score, the soundtrack features the popular chart hits “The Way You Do the Things You Do” by UB40 and “Back to Life” by Soul II Soul, plus the original songs “Livin’ on the Edge of the Night” by Iggy Pop and “I’ll Be Holding On” by Gregg Allman.
The movie was Yusaku Matsuda’s final cinematic role
Considered one of Japanese cinema’s most important actors Yûsaku Matsuda started out his career in the small screen before making a name for himself in feature films like Detective Story and The Family Game. He was known for regularly taking on detective roles in the movies he starred in but for Black Rain the actor played against type by embodying a more villainous role. Sadly, Black Rain was also the veteran actor’s final film role. Matsuda was aware that he was suffering from bladder cancer and that his condition would worsen by working in the film, but he chose to do it anyway. Ridley Scott was unaware that Matsuda was ailing and when the performer passed away on November 6, 1989, less than seven weeks after the effort’s American premiere, Scott made sure to dedicate the film to his memory. Several manga, anime and video game characters were based on his likeness and appearance. The most famous of which was Spike Spiegel from Cowboy Bebop.
Ken Takakura was Japan’s biggest star at the time Black Rain was being shot
Ken Takakura was a Japanese actor who possessed a prolific filmography, starring in over 200 films and winning the Japan Academy Prize for Outstanding performance for a lead performance a record four times. His brooding persona and dashing looks made him the ideal go-to person to play bad guys in movies and that was exactly what he did. But like Matsuda, he too played against type by taking on a good guy role in Black Rain. At the time the movie was made Takakura was Japan’s biggest box-office star and his popularity was such that he’d be mobbed by fans who invaded the sets to try and get his autograph. This also caused problems as the film was already in a very strict time frame to begin with.
Jackie Chan turned down the role of playing a baddie
Jackie Chan is an action legend. ‘Nuff said. The actor, martial artist and stuntman gained immense popularity for his own unique brand of slapstick acrobatic fighting that by the time he made his shift to Hollywood with the Rush Hour franchise he was already a familiar name to the Western world. Since the start of his career, Chan’s roles have all been good guy roles and he had a natural knack for being a loveable goofball capable of insane acrobatic skill. But at the very outset of this movie’s production the producers thought it’d be interesting if Chan could be persuaded to take on a more villainous role. But the actor turned down the offer as he felt audiences would never want to see him play a “bad” character in a movie. The role then went to Yûsaku Matsuda.
Mixed reception, box-office success and the birth of a cult classic
Made on a production budget of $30 million Black Rain went on to make a rock solid $134.2 million at the worldwide box-office and at the Japanese box-office it went on to become the fifth top-grossing foreign film of 1989. Black Rain even received two Academy Awards nominations in the technical categories for Best Sound and Best Sound Effects Editing though it failed to walk away with any wins, and whilst the reception for the movie by film critics were rather mixed there were a fair few who appreciated what Ridley Scott & company had tried to achieve.
Michael Wilmington of the Los Angeles Times called the plot as “standard ’80s schtick” but hailed the visuals as “hellaciously gorgeous” and concluded by stating that “action movies are one genre where clichés can be transcended and execution can triumph over content. That’s what happens here.” Rita Kempley of The Washington Post was another fan of the effort, writing that Scott “approaches this prickly action thriller with the gusto of a sushi chef in a fish storm. Unfortunately and typically, he loses sight of his story in this artistic barrage of blood and guts. It’s a gorgeous, erratic movie most definitely not for those with an aversion to cutlery.”
Although not considered one of Ridley Scott’s finest, the stylish neo-noir actioner has gone on to become a cult classic which has developed its own devoted fan base. During interviews both its lead actor Michael Douglas and director Ridley Scott have looked back at this experience and the final product with much respect and admiration. Because even though its story is a cliched, paint-by-numbers affair the sumptuous visuals, compelling performances and stylish execution more than makes up for it and then some.
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Hasitha Fernando is a part-time medical practitioner and full-time cinephile. Follow him on Twitter via @DoctorCinephile for regular updates on the world of entertainment.
