DEATH TAKES A U.S. HOLIDAY.

Byline: Glenn Whipp Film Critic

There are 71 gruesomely depicted deaths in Takeshi Kitano's new movie ``Brother,'' including a beheading, numerous stabbings, a car-bomb explosion and a hara-kiri episode that interrupts an otherwise celebratory dinner.

In other words, it's par for the course for a Kitano film.

This is the prolific Japanese filmmaker's first movie to be shot in America, representing a serious attempt to make Kitano's name known in households outside of his homeland. As such, ``Brother'' feels like a sort of calling card, a greatest-hits reel designed to initiate newcomers and placate diehards who were disappointed by the sentimentality of his last effort, 1999's ``Kikujiro.'' On those two rudimentary levels, ``Brother'' works, but with a paucity of new ideas, Kitano mostly seems to be spinning his wheels before (hopefully) staking out some bold new territory with his next venture.

Kitano writes, directs, edits and stars in his own films, invariably playing the same impenetrable tough guy, the Man With No Expression. By comparison, he makes Jet Li look like Jerry Lewis. Kitano contrasts his deadpan acting style against the rapidly escalating body count accumulating on the screen, providing some rather macabre moments of humor. Example: A Japanese hoodlum takes a knife and slits open his own stomach after having his ``guts'' called into question. In the background, we see an older member of the ``family'' calmly continue to eat his sushi.

Admittedly, Kitano's style and humor are not for all tastes, and even though ``Brother'' features American actors and is primarily in the English language, it's not the best place for newcomers to begin an appreciation. Find a good video store and rent ``Fireworks'' or ``Sonatine'' instead.

For those determined to forge ahead, ``Brother'' finds Kitano playing the unfathomable Yamamoto, who comes to Los Angeles after he is disowned by the brotherhood of his Yakuza clan in Tokyo. Upon arriving in the Southland, Yamamoto finds his half brother, Ken (Claude Maki), who is dealing drugs in the 'hood with a couple of home boys, including Denny (Omar Epps, looking a little lost).

Yamamoto has little command of the language, but his murderous skills make him a good fit on the mean streets of L.A. (The local police are nowhere to be seen in the movie, except for one brief instance where two officers accept bribes.) Cold and caustic, Yamamoto soon wipes out Ken's supplier and an entire Latino drug gang and moves into plush digs in a downtown office building. The movie's story arc then runs a predictable course: success, jealousy, betrayal, overreaching and, finally, catastrophe.

Kitano has done it all before, and the new setting on foreign soil adds little to either his work or the American gangster genre. Tenuous attempts made to connect the Japanese clans with their Angeleno counterparts go nowhere and only underscore that Kitano's inspiration has come to a creative standstill.

``You Japanese are so inscrutable,'' Kitano's character sardonically remarks toward the end of the film. Sadly, the opposite is true here. The whole thing couldn't be more obvious.

``BROTHER''

(Rated R: graphic violence, strong language)

The stars: Takeshi Kitano, Omar Epps, Claude Maki, Masayo Kato.

Behind the scenes: Written and directed by Kitano. Released by Sony Pictures Classics.

Running time: One hour, 53 minutes.

Playing: Laemmle's Playhouse 7 Cinemas in Pasadena; Laemmle's Monica in Santa Monica; Laemmle's Regent Showcase in Hollywood.

Our rating: Two stars

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The gruesome ``Brother,'' with its chorus line of chic killers, features enough mayhem for several movies.