Zeiram 2

Not funny bad... just plain bad (and very boring). Poorly directed, written and acted. The best that I can say about it is that some of the costumes were of average quality. Reminded me vaguely of the Power Rangers without any campy fun (not that the PR had much it's just that this is quite possibly worse). Avoid at all costs.

This is one of my top ten favorite films. Although it is essentially an inferior remake of the original "Zeiram", where it really shines is in actress Yuko Moriyama's portrayal of the principal character, Iria. Her character has been refined and fleshed out considerably since the first film, and Ms. Moriyama's uncompromising presence, radiant beauty, and fierce intensity quickly elevate the film from mediocrity. Fans of science fiction, Japanese monster movies, and femme fatales will all find something to like in this film. The weakest links in the film are the challenging pace (typical in Japanese cinema) and the return of Teppei and Kamiya to provide mirthful moments of comedic relief. Typical of Director Keita Amemiya's other work, he seems more interested in delivering a stylistic and visually stunning film instead of a cohesive narrative, but on that level it succeeds with flying colors.

I came across this movie some time back and decided to pick it up since the anime version remains one of my favorites of all time. The premise seemed promising, as did the cast of characters. Iria and her partners Bob and Fujikuro face off against an army of intergalactic mercenaries, thugs, etc. and a new robotic Zeiram unit is assigned to help them out. With Iria's old friends Kamiya and Teppei stumbling upon the face-off, the fusion of the first film and the anime was complete and success assured. And then somehow the director let everything fall apart at an amazing rate. Whatever potential the elements from the anime storyline had were completely wasted in favor of reiterating the first movie. As a result, by the end of the first hour you have the feeling that you've seen it all before, and performed a lot better the first time around. All in all, the ONLY reason to get this movie would be for the exceedingly small satisfaction of completing the Zeiram series. Otherwise, stick to the first two installments (Zeiram & Iria: Zeiram the Animation) and you'll be a lot better off.

Bounty-huntress babe Iria (Yuko Moriyama) is back, along with AI colleague 'Bob' and comic-relief pair Teppei (Kunihiro Ida) and Kamiya (Yukijiro Hotaru). Also back is Zieram, who appears to be some kind of phallic ET with pasty human face (sometimes) who has taken over a killer robot sent to help Iria retrieve some kind of trans-dimensional McGuffin. As silly, action-packed tokusatsus go, Zieram 2 is entertaining enough (just don't think about it too much). The imagery and special effects are as over-the-top as expected, and Yuko Moriyama makes for a fine, easy-to-look-at, kick-ass heroine. Plot and characterisations are not sufficiently dense that watching the first installment is necessary to follow this one. An anime backstory for Iria was made around the same time. A watchable eye-roller. As in the first film, the wicked little white-faced priapic-monster is the best part.

As young as I was when I saw this movie, it still felt claustrophobicly cheap. I don't recall if I had seen Dark Hero Guyver before or after this one, but in terms of concept, pace, choreography, and effects, I was much more impressed by the latter. I do remember feeling there was something memorable about the way Irya fought the Zeiram in their first combat, but as rich as the costumes and characters were, they were wasted. Robert Rodriguez' Desperado is less random in killing away potentially interesting characters. Zeiram 2 does not waste time in reducing the principal characters involved to Irya and the Zeiram. The movie is all about Irya's character. Ironically, she was all I was interested in when I saw her on the cover of the videotape--in the end, the movie basically delivered all that I wanted, and I was sad I didn't wish for more.