Outrage Beyond: A cathartic sequel.

 

Being ill sucks. What doesn't suck is sequels that not only expand upon what their predecessors set up, but also offer some really nice cathartic pay-offs. This is the case with Takeshi 'Beat' Kitano's second movie in the Outrage trilogy, Beyond Outrage. It moves from the bleak, cynical nature of the first movie into a much more cathartic, cynicism with lot's of characters getting their well-deserved come-uppances. 

Set around five years after the events of the first movie, Kato has taken over as chairman of the Sanno-kai following his murder of the previous chairman. Under his leadership, the family has grown vastly in scale and in profits, focusing on international trade, alongside the regular crime and even delving deep into the political realm. His right-hand man is Ishihara, the slimy little weasel who betrayed the Otomo family in the prior movie. Together, they have started focusing on promoting family members based on profits made instead of loyalty like the old Yakuza ways. This change doesn't sit well with the loyal, older heads of the family, with many of them being passed over in favour of younger guys. The growth of the Sanno-kai also hasn't gone unnoticed by the police force, with crooked cop Kataoka's superiors taking note and causing him to once again hatch up a scheme to weaken them by playing Yakuza against one another. 

Despite seemingly being dead at the end of the first movie, it turns out that Otomo survived being stabbed in the stomach by Kimura. Kataoka had fed the Sanno-kai rumours that he was dead deliberately for such an occasion. Naturally, Kataoka plans on using Otomo in his schemes, something which Otomo knows all too well and wants nothing to do with. Having him released early, Kataoka arranges for our protagonist to meet with Kimura for the two to make peace and then wage war against those who wronged them. 

Beyond Outrage is a very cathartic movie due to many of the worst people from the first movie getting what they deserve. A lot of the bad characters are murdered in revenge for the events in the first movie in which they either had a hand in or orchestrated. One could make the argument that their greed in wanting something more than what they had, murdering others to rise in status and power, is what caused their downfall. It makes for a very satisfying watch, even when the violence is very toned down compared to its' predecessor. Indeed, the most brutality we see is one particularly slimy character meeting their end in a fun way, within the confines of a batting centre. There is the usage of a drill, but it's not particularly graphic, despite how gruesome it would be in real life. There's plenty of shooting, some punching and kicking, but for the most part we see the aftermath much more than the actual killings themselves. 

What is also fascinating to think about is just how our protagonists such as Otomo, are essentially the last vestiges of the old way of Yakuza life, a dying breed within the world of the Outrage trilogy. Men of honour are discarded and used, whilst the schemers and plotters all snake their way to the top. Kato and Ishihara's Sanno-kai is very much like a modern day business, a company which is all about profits, statistics with international ambition, tossing aside tradition, not caring about rewarding the old guard for their loyalty and seniority. It's really well-done, especially when we see the old-guard clashing with Ishihara and Kato. 

In many ways, it is much slower-paced than the first movie, taking a lot of time to set things up with establishing the growth of the Sanno-kai, Otomo's current situation and introducing the Hanabishi. Once the violence starts however, the pace quickens in a delightful way and doesn't truly let up until the end. 

I'd really like to mention just how great the performances of Ryo Kase and Tomokazu Miura were in Beyond Outrage. Both are seemingly under control of things within the Sanno-kai, ruling over the family and overseeing the growth of it. However, both swiftly become super paranoid and even fearful when they learn about Otomo's survival of the stabbing and his impending release from prison. Both Kase and Miura brought their A-games to the roles and they both managed to successfully capture the change in attitudes with aplomb.

Also worth mentioning in regards to performance is the often reliable, Fumiyo Kohinata. His performance as the crooked cop, Kataoka, really is crucial to the first two movies of the trilogy as he has a huge part in orchestrating the events that happen. His gleeful satisfaction in setting Yakuza families against one another makes him a compelling character to watch and one which audiences love to watch get his own comeuppance. 

Overall, Beyond Outrage does a fantastic job in expanding upon the characters, setting and themes of the original without overstepping nor messing up the lore in any way. One could argue that having Otomo survive the stabbing is a bold move and not the most realistic, but it's fun having him survive and take revenge. It's one of the best things about the movie and I highly recommend it to fans of the Yakuza genre or of Beat Takeshi's work in general.