Death Note II: The Last Name.  (2006) Directed by Kaneko Shusuke.

"Yagami Light, you will manage to kill a Shinigami. In fact, you are the Devil."  Rem, a Shinigami; last words.

Starting to the strains of The Red Hot Chili Pepper's Dani California, this movie starts where that one ended.  It's closing credit music picks up the story.  It begins at Shiuri's funeral. 

Yagami Light (Fujiwara Tatsuya) is a college student, who gained control of a Death Note.  This notebook is the tool of the Shinigami, or Angels of Death.  When a persons name is written in the book, they die.  There are rules; the writer must know the person's name, and picture their face.  The time and manner of death can be dictated; otherwise, it is within a minute by heart attack.

Light writes the names of murderers and rapists who have slipped through the justice system.  Finally, he feels there is real justice in the world, and it is his to mete out.

Of course, a pattern is detected, and the mysterious killer is dubbed "Kira" (the Japanese translation for Killer).  Light feels himself to be the god of the new age, ushering in an era devoid of crime because punishment can not be thwarted.

However, he is thwarted by the investigation; the mysterious Detective "L" (Matsuyama Ken'ichi) is on the case, and quickly deduces that Kira is a student in the Canto Province of Japan, and must have the face and name to enact the murder.

Light is smart, L is smarter, but the deck is stacked in Light's favor.  He has the help of Ryuuk, a demented punk rock angel of death (voiced by Nakamura Shido) who can not be seen or heard by anyone who has not touched the Death Note.  He is great for checking for hidden cameras, etc.  Also, Light can delay the time of death, by writing it into the notes.

In the first movie, a pop star named Misa Misa (Toda Erika) also comes into possession of a Death Note.  Here we see her become the Second Kira.  Announcing her intention to assist Kira with a tape sent to a TV station, the Second Kira has a power the first Kira lacks; she traded half her life span to have the Shinigami's eyes, which reveal a person's name and how long they have left to live.  With this, they can discover L's name, and eliminate him.

However, L is very on top of things, and while Misa sees his face, L prevents her from being able to convey the information to Light, his prime suspect.  As Misa is held in custody, Light has to figure a way to throw L off the trail, free Misa, and get the name from her; all the while they are both under constant surveillance.

His plan is bold, innovative and should finally free Light of L forever, allowing Kira to become the hidden god of death for the new era.

But is Light as smart as he thinks he is?  Is he smarter than L?  It is a cat and mouse chess match with death as the ultimate stakes.

This is the ending adaptation of the 12 issue hit manga by  Oba Tsugumi, and Obata Takeshi.  Part of the success of this film is the casting; if you have ever seen the art, Light and L are perfectly cast, L mimicking the strange contortions of the manga character.  It is an eerie and flawless performance.  Further Light has the same hard sleek ruthless quality of his character.  Both boys are beautiful, as they were in the manga, and have an almost erotic connection; each the counter to the other, Light, dark, Extroverted, Introverted, Good, Evil, Yin, Yang.

More cerebral than action oriented, more philosophical than horrifying, it is a very odd manga, and a very odd movie.

However, it works, because it is well done; top flight writing turned into a workable screenplay, the actors, perfectly type cast, are also excellent masters of their craft.  Also, for the English version, the dubbing is flawless; no Gojira Sound track discrepancies.  It is easy to follow.

The Special effects are pretty much limited to the CGI Shinigami, and they work as well, following the light/dark dichotomy.  They lend the work its otherworldly weirdness.

All in all these two movies are a monument to manga adapted movies.  This one broke all box office records throughout South East Asia.  Find out why.

Recommended:
Yes

Viewing Format: DVD
Video Occasion: Fit for Friday Evening
Suitability For Children: Suitable for Children Age 13 and Older