A curious hybrid of French sensibilities and Japanese aesthetics, Tokyo Eyes weaves the intriguing tale of a wannabe killer and the girl who falls for him to visually extravagant, but somewhat hollow, effect. Though a movie that borrows elements from Breathless while changing the setting from Paris to modern day Tokyo may sound like a winning combination to fans of world cinema, director Jean-Pierre Limosin ultimately lacks the cohesive storytelling and characterization skills that made Godard's classic so effective and timeless. Sure, stars Shinji Takada and Hinano Yoshikawa offer compelling leads, but the script ultimately lacks the needed characterization to make either character truly compelling or sympathetic. Whether simply neglecting the motivations behind K's (Takada) quirky (and ultimately harmless) crime spree or offering an elliptical coda that aims to move viewers but offers little more than disorientation, the fact that all of the story elements point to a tender and compelling drama make Tokyo Eyes' weak points all the more disheartening. Godard's masterpiece offered style in spades, but the thing that made his film truly effective was his ability to use that style to his advantage when it came to building characterization. As hard as Takada and Yoshikawa try, there's just no building on a foundation that isn't there in the first place. With a good screenwriter with whom to collaborate, Limosin may, in the future, be able to craft a finely tuned film that will move audiences as much as dazzle them.