Death Note 2: The Last Name

I knew that the Death Note story couldn't be told in a single movie and the Americans proved that several times over, the Japanese made it a two parter and though it's not on par with the anime it's still great viewing.

Following on the story from Light & L's first meeting the battle of the two great minds continues as they try to outdo one another until the fantastic finale.

Once again there are differences from the anime and the story isn't identical (Including the finale) but it's loyal enough to the original material to not be offensive.

Once again both Light and L actors knock their performances out of the park and make up for some shoddy cgi and questionable soundtrack.

I would recommend the Death Note movies to any Death Note fan, anyone who has only seen the US version and anyone who simply doesn't fancy anime.

Now venturing on to the live action spinoffs methinks.

The Good:

It's Death Note

Perfect casting

Extremely well written

The Bad:

They changed Rems entire gender!

Red Hot Chilli Peppers again!? Really!?

Ryuk/Rem sfx still crap

Things I Learnt From This Movie:

The Death note story can be just about accomplished across 4hrs with tweaks

The second part of the "Death Note" movie series, "the Last Name" starts from where the first one ended. Yagami Light, who uses God of Death's notebook, the Death Note, to kill criminals has joined the team of his father, Inspector Yagami, and the world's greatest detective, L, to capture Kira. Light, who is Kira, is motivated by his need to discover L's true name, so he can get rid of the detective. Meanwhile L is certain that Light is Kira, but without evidence he can't do anything but wait and see. As if things aren't bad enough, a Second Kira appears out of nowhere, to help Kira. Second Kira is Amane Misa, a rising idol, who worships Kira and has her own Death Note. Things move to their conclusion.

"Death Note: the Last Name" is a great improvement when compared to the first movie. Where first film was still somewhat slow and uncertain, the second part keeps the viewer interested its whole length: nearly two and half hours! The second part is also more faithful to the original manga than the first one. Greatest difference would be removing the character of Higuchi and replacing him with Takada, who in manga didn't appear until much later. The second movie is also the concluding one, which might be confusing since both movies together only tell the first half of the manga events. Still the finale has been cleverly turned faithful to manga, and I personally like it even better than manga ending.

I already commented the performances of Tatsuya Fujiwara(Light), Ken'ichi Matsuyama(L) and Takeshi Kaga(Inspector Yagami) in my review of first "Death Note" movie, so I'll just comment the new parties here. Erika Toda surprised me with her role as Misa. Although, like many other manga fans, I too would have wanted to see blonde Misa, the hair colour was the only complain I could come up with. Her Misa is naive but not as annoyingly air headed as in the manga, but actually makes her a believable. Nana Katase makes an okay role as an ambitious Takada, although I feel she could have done better.

The complains are the same as previous: the minor characters of police investigators are left in the background and the Death Gods look ridiculous, but this time the dynamic moving of the story saves a lot.

What can I say? A definitive improvement to the first film and a great ending to the story.

Death Note 2 is a brilliantly done movie. It's the thriller that other movies wish they could grow up to be. I can't think of any major flaw with it. The acting was good, unlike some other Japanese movies which have good plots or ideas which are watered down by poor acting or special effects. It did feel quite stretched out though, it's more than 2 hours long. But that only made the plot that much more twisting and kept the audience guessing. There were some scenes that were a tad clichéd, but it lacked the predictable plot twist that we're so accustomed to in so many Hollywood flicks. The pace was brilliant and kept the movie fresh.Even though it was longer than 2 hours I barely felt it. It's a very entertaining and carefully thought out movie. The director did not screw it up by trying to outdo the anime or manga, and it didn't go up its own butt with social commentary. It was immensely thrilling, engaging and fiendishly clever. A very good movie from Japan, especially after years of poorly made horror films trying to ride on The Ring's success.

Death Note II picks up right where the first installment left off, with Light and L locked together in partnership. Only a new notebook and shinigami appears, bringing Kira II into the equation, complicating matters for Light while providing him with a means to overcome L.

This film betters the first film by offering more twists and superior plotting. Erika Toda as Misa Amane nails the shallow pop idol role, while providing ample comic fodder to divert us from the mind games. Shunji Fujimura as Watari ups his game here. Light has to face the consequences of his actions and the questionable nature of some of his choices. Ken'ichi Matsuyama shines again as the idiosyncratic L. There are more laughs, more questions, more surprises, and a satisfying climax this time round. No one in their right mind will watch this before watching the first, and if you liked the first you'll want to watch this. Rest assured, it does not disappoint.

It seems that every live action derivative of a manga/anime that I've seen has been barely watchable at best.

These movies on the other hand were entertaining to the end. They stayed with the main plot as much as possible and delivered the memorable dramatic scenes with new live action flavor, but changed the plot without opening holes and delivered a new, believable conclusion.

I didn't like Fujiwara much in the lead role- he's not dynamic or conniving enough to bring the role to life. Quite often his face seems to "give it away" when his role calls for a solid and impenetrable exterior.

Matsuyama, however, takes on the ridiculously difficult role of "L" and absolutely rocks. Vocal tones, strange postures and movements, appearance, mannerisms, all breathe life into what was one of the best characters ever to grace manga shelves. My only complaint was the over-decadent manner in which he ate his candy- it seemed a little contrived, as opposed to the more matter-of-fact noshing done by the manga/anime character during his investigations.

Thay certainly could have done a lot worse, and they took enough film time to do the series justice. Can't wait for the American version.