The ending of the original "Lady Snowblood" left the fate of Yuki Kashima (Meiko Kaji) somewhat ambiguous. She was shot and severely gut stabbed, and the movie closed with her lying motionless on the ground. Perhaps with an eye toward a sequel, the film makers brought her back in another tale in which she embarks on a journey of vengeance. This time though, the story is set amidst the political turmoil of 1906 Meiji Japan, with Yuki captured and arrested for the murder of thirty seven of her countrymen. The reason for these killings wasn't adequately established except in a mention of murder for hire in the narrative; in the first film she was on a personal mission of revenge for the death of her imprisoned mother.
Something I noticed in the first film but didn't mention in my review of it, was the point that Yuki didn't seem particularly skillful in the demonstration of her swordsmanship. She simply slashed and stabbed her way against opponents in a manner that didn't require any type of exceptional choreography. At any time when she was surrounded by authorities, it seemed to me she should have been overtaken by sheer force of numbers, even if Yuki did manage to wound or kill a couple. Considering that sometimes one of the authorities had a gun made it seem even more incredible, so one has to wonder about the thought process put into the story.
Be that as it may, fans of Japanese martial films will probably accept most of these inconsistencies for the sake of a decently staged action thriller. The political subtext involved was an interesting departure from the first film, with elements of ransom demands and threat of a plague infection thrown in for good measure. The bloodletting is toned down from the original, though fans of such are treated to a requisite amount of the red stuff. As before, Yuki suffers some bullet wounds in closing out the story, but still having the presence of mind to put her benefactor Shusuke (Yoshio Harada) out of his misery upon request. Not to mention the bad guys, only fitting as they had it coming.
Something I noticed in the first film but didn't mention in my review of it, was the point that Yuki didn't seem particularly skillful in the demonstration of her swordsmanship. She simply slashed and stabbed her way against opponents in a manner that didn't require any type of exceptional choreography. At any time when she was surrounded by authorities, it seemed to me she should have been overtaken by sheer force of numbers, even if Yuki did manage to wound or kill a couple. Considering that sometimes one of the authorities had a gun made it seem even more incredible, so one has to wonder about the thought process put into the story.
Be that as it may, fans of Japanese martial films will probably accept most of these inconsistencies for the sake of a decently staged action thriller. The political subtext involved was an interesting departure from the first film, with elements of ransom demands and threat of a plague infection thrown in for good measure. The bloodletting is toned down from the original, though fans of such are treated to a requisite amount of the red stuff. As before, Yuki suffers some bullet wounds in closing out the story, but still having the presence of mind to put her benefactor Shusuke (Yoshio Harada) out of his misery upon request. Not to mention the bad guys, only fitting as they had it coming.