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Azumi 2: Death or Love
DVD/APPROX. 95 MINS/2005/JAPAN MA15+
DVD/APPROX. 95 MINS/2005/JAPAN MA15+
8
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Cult Director Ryuhei Kitamura, who also directed Versus, Godzilla Final Wars and the upcoming Midnight Meat Train, knows what elements to use
to make a hit film. With Azumi he mixed cute Asian girls, feudal Japanese tales, swordplay and bloodletting to make a film that has appeal to all.
With Azumi 2: Death or Love, director Shusuke Kaneko, the man responsible for the Gamera films of the 90s, adds the element that Azumi was
missing to make it perfect for Western audiences: actress Chiaki Kuriyama (of Kill Bill and Battle Royale fame). The Azumi films are based on the
long running manga by Yu Koyama, which ran in the Japanese serial comic ' Big Comic Superior'.
Azumi 2 tells the continuing story of the young girl assassin Azumi (Aya Ueto), who is employed, along with her surviving associate, Nagara (Yuma
Ishigawa) to kill a government official with war-like aspirations, Masayuki (Mikijiro Hira). Along the way, to complete her mission Azumi meets up
with a new gang, who decide to join her. Little does Azumi, and her new rag-tag gang know, that Masayuki has a small army of killers and
assassins, ready and willing to stop her no matter what it takes.
Azumi 2 is an entertaining film, chockablock full of great action sequences and steeped in Japanese feudal history. Obviously this film is marketed
towards a teen/early twenties audience with its pop star/ soap opera star as the heroine, buffoonish ‘comedy’ sidekicks, hyper reality history (my
Japanese history may not be accurate but I doubt if shorts and knee-high socks were a Japanese feudal fashion for women) and while there is a
lot of fighting action and bloodshed…it seems to be lighter than a more ‘adult’ Asian action film. Azumi 2 is not as good as the first, but is still
entertaining, and Aya and Chiaki are a nice bonus for the eye!
With a grand combination of feudal Japanese settings, martial arts and sword fighting action, and cute girls kicking ass, this film will appeal to both
the Monkey and Buffy fan within you.
The extras on this disc are pretty good. There is a 30 minute making of that covers the origins of the movies, and gives a summary of the first film,
for those who have not seen it. There are interviews with several cast members, and some behind the scenes stuff. There is also two teasers,
three TV spots and the full trailer for the film. There are also trailers for other Madman releases: Aragami, Kill! and Zatoichi: The Outlaw. One
thing you must remember with these extras is that to get access to the English subtitles, you must use the subtitle button on your DVD player, as
there is no 'English subtitle' button for the extras on the menu.
With this excellent region 4 DVD, Madman Entertainment again have come to the party, not just with a six pack, but with a keg and 12 pizzas. The
quality of this disc is of the high standard that Madman fans are accustomed to.
to make a hit film. With Azumi he mixed cute Asian girls, feudal Japanese tales, swordplay and bloodletting to make a film that has appeal to all.
With Azumi 2: Death or Love, director Shusuke Kaneko, the man responsible for the Gamera films of the 90s, adds the element that Azumi was
missing to make it perfect for Western audiences: actress Chiaki Kuriyama (of Kill Bill and Battle Royale fame). The Azumi films are based on the
long running manga by Yu Koyama, which ran in the Japanese serial comic ' Big Comic Superior'.
Azumi 2 tells the continuing story of the young girl assassin Azumi (Aya Ueto), who is employed, along with her surviving associate, Nagara (Yuma
Ishigawa) to kill a government official with war-like aspirations, Masayuki (Mikijiro Hira). Along the way, to complete her mission Azumi meets up
with a new gang, who decide to join her. Little does Azumi, and her new rag-tag gang know, that Masayuki has a small army of killers and
assassins, ready and willing to stop her no matter what it takes.
Azumi 2 is an entertaining film, chockablock full of great action sequences and steeped in Japanese feudal history. Obviously this film is marketed
towards a teen/early twenties audience with its pop star/ soap opera star as the heroine, buffoonish ‘comedy’ sidekicks, hyper reality history (my
Japanese history may not be accurate but I doubt if shorts and knee-high socks were a Japanese feudal fashion for women) and while there is a
lot of fighting action and bloodshed…it seems to be lighter than a more ‘adult’ Asian action film. Azumi 2 is not as good as the first, but is still
entertaining, and Aya and Chiaki are a nice bonus for the eye!
With a grand combination of feudal Japanese settings, martial arts and sword fighting action, and cute girls kicking ass, this film will appeal to both
the Monkey and Buffy fan within you.
The extras on this disc are pretty good. There is a 30 minute making of that covers the origins of the movies, and gives a summary of the first film,
for those who have not seen it. There are interviews with several cast members, and some behind the scenes stuff. There is also two teasers,
three TV spots and the full trailer for the film. There are also trailers for other Madman releases: Aragami, Kill! and Zatoichi: The Outlaw. One
thing you must remember with these extras is that to get access to the English subtitles, you must use the subtitle button on your DVD player, as
there is no 'English subtitle' button for the extras on the menu.
With this excellent region 4 DVD, Madman Entertainment again have come to the party, not just with a six pack, but with a keg and 12 pizzas. The
quality of this disc is of the high standard that Madman fans are accustomed to.
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