Yesterday I saw the fist Azumi and it impressed me so much that today I went to see the second one.
I still think that the movie by itself is good. It just doesn't lift to the height of the first one. It's seems that many had expectations about this one that doesn't came through, but if to look at it without comparing to the fist one, Azumi 2 is fine.
The plot is OK. More flaws than in the first one but it's not the problem of this film. It is not as appealing as the first one, but still interesting and never boring. I'm a little disappointed that Kanbei (my favorite character from the first movie) is underused.
The positive thing about this movie, is that it keeps the main cast from the first Azumi (specially when I saw them one after the other).
fights are great, and pretty much on the same level as in Azumi.
The ninja characters are very interesting. They have new tricks and new weapons, and add a lot to the movie.
But the movie has two major flaws: One is the character of Azumi and Nagara, which seems to be less determined in their mission and find other things more important ( like love or quiet living), one thing i could never expect after the ending of the first Azumi, and even less after their swearing to Tenkai in continuing the mission.
The second flaw doesn't concern the first Azumi, and it is in the dialog's of the characters. They say things that are obvious ,make them look stupid. They also look more dramatic (which is far above most of Chinese Kong Fu movies conversations but still reminds them).
Overall i think Azumi2 is a likable samurai movie and better than most in this category.
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