the eel tell a story about a japanese man who cop with his guilt after commit a crime . ( i would not go into detail on the crime and that for you to find out ) the way he do this be what make this movie a great one in my book . not only do he turn himself in after the crime ( with a great way of response by the police ) he even make a friend out of an eel in prison . hence the name of the movie . once outside the prison he try to build up a barber shop and get his life back on track . the film be carry by it character interaction . apart from these there be nothing else in this film and so for those who do not like dialogue do not bother with this film because you will be bore . for the others and who like a story carry by character and this surely be a must . the only flaw for me be the presence of a quirky ufo nut and but that minor . and please watch the original version with sub and not some gruesome dubbed version . i never understood the appeal of a dub .