Watch The Blood of Wolves II (2021) online

The sequel to 2018's yakuza film The Blood of Wolves is a worthy follow-up that might not match it in qualitative terms but it sure does with its entertainment factor.

Whereas detective Hioka was more of a sidekick in the original, here he's the main character who seems to follow a similar path to Ogami (Koji Yakusho) from the original. His efforts to control the peace between rival yakuza clans are threatened by the arrival of Uebayashi, a sadistic murderer who purports himself to be a clan leader but only creates chaos wherever he goes. In you are for 2 and a quarter hours of a constantly fun, if gory and melodramatic, series of confrontations and showdowns. This is a well crafted crime thriller that doesn't complicate its plot with anything that might get in the way of the viewer's enjoyment. These characters aren't subtle in any way, nor do they show any deeper moral complexities. But they don't lack charisma (especially the swaggering villain) and the film's momentum won't let you ponder its problems until it's over. My biggest complaints would go towards some scenes that are seemingly fabricated only to lead towards a dramatic resolution but don't follow up logically, as well as the overall lack of depth. But as I said, entertainment is the prime factor here and it's not hurt much by the aforementioned flaws.

In short, if you're up for another gritty, brutal crime thriller, this is a good way to spend your evening, especially if you've liked the original. This is just more of the same and I, for one, hope we'll continue getting more.