Black Rain is a 1989 American neo-noir action thriller film directed by Ridley Scott and starring Michael Douglas, Andy García, Ken Takakura, Kate Capshaw, Yūsaku Matsuda and Tomisaburo Wakayama.

[7] Nick Conklin is an NYPD detective who has come under fire from Internal Affairs, who believes he and his former partner stole money from evidence used in a drug bust.

While explaining the incident, Nick and Charlie convince the Osaka prefectural police to allow them to observe the investigation on Sato's activities, with Assistant Inspector Masahiro Matsumoto accompanying the duo.

Shortly after the meeting, Nick chases after Sato, but is promptly arrested and deported for carrying a gun in public, while Matsumoto is suspended and demoted.

Following a tip from Joyce, he meets Sugai, who tells him that he survived the bombing of Hiroshima and that his counterfeiting scheme is his revenge on the U.S. for the "black rain" he experienced that day and for corrupting Sato and the younger Japanese generation with western ideals.

At a remote farm, Nick and Matsumoto regroup and deduce that Sato is plotting to massacre Sugai's gang upon seeing some of his henchmen dressed as rice farmers.

Additional cast members include Ken Kensei as Matsumoto's son, Vondie Curtis-Hall as an NYPD detective, Josip Elic as Joe the bartender, Keone Young as a karaoke singer, Shôtarô Hayashi; Toshishiro Obata and Takayuki Kubota as yakuza mediators, Shiro Oishi; Roy K. Ogata; Nathan Jung; Al Leong, Mak Takano and Bruce Locke as Sato's henchmen, and Professor Toru Tanaka and Jôji Shimaki as Sugai's henchmen.

Michael Douglas read the script before offering it to producers Sherry Lansing and Stanley R. Jaffe, whom he worked with on the 1987 film Fatal Attraction.

[10] Harrison Ford and Kurt Russell were strongly considered for the role of Nick Conklin, before Douglas was cast due to his favorable relationship with producers Lansing and Jaffe.

[3] Scott was eventually forced to leave the country and complete the final climactic scene in Napa Valley, California, after ruling out shooting in New York or Hong Kong.

[3] The unfavorable working conditions also caused original cinematographer Howard Atherton to quit early in production, and he was replaced by Jan de Bont.

An aerial shot of Osaka bay at sunset with the estuaries of the Yodogawa, Kanzakigawa and Ajigawa rivers frames the opening sequence of the arrival into Japan.

The futurist Kirin Plaza building (architect Shin Takamatsu, built 1987), the Ebisubashi and the famous neon wall overlooking the Dōtonbori canal creates the Blade Runner-esque mise-en-scène.

[12] The climactic motorbike chase sequence was shot in the Napa Valley region of Northern California, partially on the grounds of the Domaine Chandon vineyard,[3] and the Silverado Resort and Spa, which at the time was owned by Sega chairman Isao Okawa.

Zimmer would go on to score several more films for Scott, including Thelma and Louise, Hannibal, Gladiator, Black Hawk Down and Matchstick Men.

[17] In its opening weekend, Black Rain grossed US$9.6 million in 1,610 theaters in the U.S. and Canada, ranking #1 at the box office and staying there for two weeks.

As bad movies go, however, the American 'Black Rain' is easy to sit through, mostly because of the way Mr. Scott and his production associates capture the singular look of contemporary urban Japan.

"[20] Roger Ebert gave the film two stars out of four and stated, "Even given all of its inconsistencies, implausibilities and recycled cliches, Black Rain might have been entertaining if the filmmakers had found the right note for the material.

"[21] Gene Siskel of the Chicago Tribune awarded the same two-star grade and wrote, "The crosscultural action picture might have worked if the filmmakers had come up with a script in which Douglas' character had been rendered weak and confused by being a fish trying to swim in strange waters.

This gripping crime thriller about hardboiled N.Y. cop Michael Douglas tracking a yakuza hood in Osaka, Japan, boasts magnificent lensing by Jan DeBont and powerfully baroque production design by Norris Spencer.

"[23] Michael Wilmington of the Los Angeles Times described the plot as "standard '80s schtick" but called the visuals "hellaciously gorgeous" and concluded that "action movies are one genre where clichés can be transcended and execution can triumph over content.

"[24] Rita Kempley of The Washington Post wrote that Scott "approaches this prickly action thriller with the gusto of a sushi chef in a fish storm.

"[25] The film holds a 54% rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 24 reviews with the consensus: "Black Rain has its fair share of Ridley Scott's directorial flair, but its paint-by-numbers story never rises above genre conventions.

"[citation needed] During an interview on the podcast WTF with Marc Maron in November 2021, Scott called the film "f*cking great".