The Age of Commercialism

Just what I expected

How sad is this?

A story that's too fascinating to pass by...

Here they appear in the wilds of Afghanistan and they take the lessons they learnt and the injustices perpetrated on them and turn it around to fight for justice. The brutality of inhumanity and violence is offered as entertainment, yes, but it is fabulous to see the protagonists show that all suffering and death was not meaningless and there is a pay-off. Enjoy!

This is a monumental, immaculately well crafted movie, but not one to be undertaken lightly. The picture's extended running time isn't the reason, as the film is captivating from start to finish. Rather, this is an emotionally draining and powerfully affecting story, and one whose characters will dwell ghostly in your psyche. A lot of talent is required to earn a title like "Battle Royale II," and the team behind director Kenta Fukasaku simply nailed it. Everything about this film was exquisite, and its screenplay is one of deepest running and most unforgettable I've experienced. This is a story about the weight of virtue in a time of war. It is a story about the power of love - even hopeless love - to carry people through impossible hardship. Finally, and as its title alludes, this is a story about what makes men human, and how war transforms them into animals. Riki Takuichi (e.g. "Sword of Doom," "The Big Gundown," etc.) puts in the performance of a lifetime, and the cast is overflowing with familiar faces and memorable characters. Some of the scenes are riveting beyond belief, and the film's 6-part structure allows it to be watched in manageable installments. By any measure, this is one of the great Japanese movies, and one of the deepest war pictures I've seen. One of my 50 favorite films.

I made the mistake of listening to the low rating reviews and put this movie off. I will never make that mistake of taking someone elses word over my own. Those who watch BR1 and then came to see BR2 were disappointed because they wanted to see the same movie twice. Why does BR1 need to be repeated in a sequel? Just watch the first one if you want to see the same thing again. BR1 had a message and BR2 stays on that same track with it's message. It's about the children that grow up living in a war they never started. Children that become victims because of the cold actions of adults. This is a movie that's exaggerated but the message is real. This is loosely based around 9- 11 and America going into Afghanistan and the cause,effect, and burden people have to carry because of their actions. When you think about the messages in this movie it's true. War does steal the smiles of children. I think this movie went over a lot of peoples heads because you either saw a war flick, a rant about USA, or a movie that wasn't battle royal.

The critique for this movie really blows me away. People cite it as inciting terrorism and such, but seem to forget this movie is set in an alternate universe! It's frankly bizarre how quick people are to put this down when it really is the direction that this franchise would go. How could you possibly say it's an imitation of the first film, when they are nothing alike other than in characters.The setup makes you think it will be a replica, but having an actual enemy for the students rather than themselves turns the whole plot on it's head. They are nothing alike It seems clear to me that a lot of people here barely understand the first movie in the first place. You have to watch this as a direct sequel, and you have to THINK about where the characters' minds are. One reviewer says that having the students team up with the terrorist is obvious. Did you watch the first part of the movie? All of the students have collars on them that could explode at any time. If you assume that they're going to team up the way they do, deactivating the collars and all, you are likely looking for the movie to be a failure.Think about it, they kill half of the class before they even reach the terrorists, why would they want to join them? Now, I don't want all of this to be some sort of counter review. This movie does have a few cheesy moments, and the beach landing scene is very dated already, but I think if you go into this movie not thinking "it's going to suck" or "it's trying to imitate BR1" and view it as a direct sequel in terms of plot advancement to BR1, you will enjoy this.Don't pick this up WANTING to see another BR, see it if you want to know where the story goes, because that's what sequels should be for primarily and that's what this is.