Takeshi Kitano's OUTRAGE was one of the best films I saw this year, a top-tier Japanese yakuza flick with all of the hard-hitting violence and dense plotting that you could wish for in a film. This follow-up carries on the same story thus was a welcome addition for me, even though it's not up there with the quality of the first.
The main issue I have with BEYOND OUTRAGE is that the pacing is a lot slower than in the first film so that you're sitting around waiting for the proper plot to kick in, especially during the first half. Plus, a lot of the plot twists and turns are rather unsatisfying, whereas the satisfying material is rushed over quite quickly. Kitano goes out of his way to avoid copying the sort of scenes we had in the first film but as those were my favourite bits I can't help but be a little disappointed.
Still, this is nevertheless compelling filmmaking with top direction and acting. Kitano is a more than welcome return as actor although his acting is more subdued here and he's keen to give the other returning stars more screen time and meat to get their teeth into. There are some fine set-pieces again, the most memorable involving baseball, and as a whole the movie has an air of quality and authenticity that makes it work. BEYOND OUTRAGE feels very much like a classic samurai movie, albeit one in a modern setting.
