Beyond Outrage

This sequel to star and director Takeshi Kitano's bloody yakuza flick Outrage continues a tale of gang rivalries that are exacerbated by police efforts to set mobsters against one another. Early scenes focus on the inner workings of the hostile syndicates—depicted here as corporations run by suit-wearing thugs who won't hesitate to betray one another. Although he appeared to die at the end of the first film, Otomo (Kitano), erstwhile boss of one of the families, returns here—emerging from prison an older and even more cunning figure, primed to cooperate with the semi-corrupt police detective who sprang him from jail in order to manipulate the gangs into a civil war. Beyond Outrage cheekily juxtaposes the ostensibly businesslike yakuza with their continuing propensity for the most grotesque brutality (fingers are still lopped off as an honorable means of apology, while enemies are dispatched not only with guns but also drills, and in one memorable sequence by a baseball pitching machine). Along the way, double- and triple-crosses occur with such bewildering speed that it's difficult to keep all of the characters and their scheming straight. Still, the abrupt ending carries a wallop, Kitano's performance as the sleepy-eyed but menacing Otomo is genuinely frightening, and he directs with an impressive degree of technical control. Likely to appeal to fans of yakuza films (and Kitano), this is a strong optional purchase. [Note: DVD/Blu-ray extras include a “making-of” documentary (62 min.), and trailers. Bottom line: a solid extras package for a convoluted but reasonably effective gangster film.] (F. Swietek)