As a die hard fan of the original from the first time I saw it, it was only natural for me to hunt down this follow up. While the original had a more simplistic, vengeance orientated plot, this sequel unfortunately bites off a bit more than it can chew as it weaves Yuki in with the politics of early 20 Century Japan and the events of the Russo-Japanese war. Overall it feels like the film is just cashing in on the popularity of Kaji Meiko generated by the first film.
That said, it still manages to entertain from the very start, with a wonderful sequence of Yuki hacking her way through a load of bad guys. Meiko lost none of her charisma from the original, which is really essential here as the film itself starts to trip of it's own plot after a while. The fact that politics is the theme here rather than vengeance doesn't give her quite as much to work with, but her ability to convey almost all of her emotions through her eyes is still a joy to watch.
Ultimately it is worth watching if you liked the original and find Kaji Meiko's presence to be enough to hold your attention. If you value a gripping plot over tremendous acting you'd be better of skipping this. The fact that the first film had both these elements and the sequel only has one makes it an inferior but still highly entertaining follow up.
That said, it still manages to entertain from the very start, with a wonderful sequence of Yuki hacking her way through a load of bad guys. Meiko lost none of her charisma from the original, which is really essential here as the film itself starts to trip of it's own plot after a while. The fact that politics is the theme here rather than vengeance doesn't give her quite as much to work with, but her ability to convey almost all of her emotions through her eyes is still a joy to watch.
Ultimately it is worth watching if you liked the original and find Kaji Meiko's presence to be enough to hold your attention. If you value a gripping plot over tremendous acting you'd be better of skipping this. The fact that the first film had both these elements and the sequel only has one makes it an inferior but still highly entertaining follow up.