Dead or Alive 2: Birds

“To paraphrase Heraclitus, ‘One cannot step twice into the same Takashi Miike film’.” - Diabolique Magazine

Ever the trickster, Takashi Miike’s sequel to/remix of his explosive DEAD OR ALIVE — filmed only a few months later — once again casts “V-cinema” (Japanese straight-to-video) badasses Sho Aikawa and Riki Takeuchi, but as new characters: rival yakuza assassins who previously were childhood friends. After a botched hit, they flee together to the island where they grew up, and devote their deadly skills to a more humanitarian cause…

“DEAD OR ALIVE was an eye-opener of magnificent proportions for many. A slam-bang, mindbending adrenalin rush which went far beyond yakuza movie conventions, with what is probably the ultimate film finale. When this movie was over, it was over. And how does one make a follow-up to the end of the world? Quite simple: one doesn’t. Straight from the opening scene it’s obvious this is a different film indeed.” - Tom Mes, Midnight Eye