Despite the success of Azumi the makers appear to have cut back on the budget for this sequel and as a result we get much less in the way of innovative action and a LOT more of wandering around in the forest.
The story picks up not long after the first with Azumi and Nagara still going after the warlords intent on seizing Japan. She soon meets a rowdy young rebel called Ginkaku who looks a lot like her dead boyfriend Nachi (a weird plot that goes absolutely nowhere) and joins forces with them to fight evil.
Some nice fight scenes follow but they use waaaay too much CGI blood effects (a horrible trend that is becoming more and more popular) and none of them have the eccentric flair of the original movie. The ending doesn't amount to much either but I'd still watch a third if they were to make it.
The story picks up not long after the first with Azumi and Nagara still going after the warlords intent on seizing Japan. She soon meets a rowdy young rebel called Ginkaku who looks a lot like her dead boyfriend Nachi (a weird plot that goes absolutely nowhere) and joins forces with them to fight evil.
Some nice fight scenes follow but they use waaaay too much CGI blood effects (a horrible trend that is becoming more and more popular) and none of them have the eccentric flair of the original movie. The ending doesn't amount to much either but I'd still watch a third if they were to make it.