Dead or Alive 2: Birds

I watched Dead or Alive 2: Birds and it’s completely different from the first film. Instead of chaos and madness, Takashi Miike slows everything down and shows a softer, more emotional side. The film starts quietly with a calm scene that sets a thoughtful tone. Right away I knew this wasn’t going to be another violent thrill ride but something much deeper.

The story follows two hitmen, Mizuki and Shu, who meet again by chance during a job and realize they were childhood friends from the same island orphanage. They escape the city and return to their home island to reconnect with old friends and memories. The movie shifts between their peaceful days on the island and the violent gang war happening back in the city because of their actions.

Miike fills the film with contrasts. Mizuki is light hearted and playful in bright shirts while Shu is dark and serious dressed in black. As they spend time together their roles start to blend and Shu rediscovers the joy he had as a child. There’s a touching scene where they perform a silly play for children while the film cuts to brutal gang violence in Tokyo. It’s strange and emotional at once, reminding us these men are caught between two worlds.

Visually the film is beautiful. The island scenes are warm and golden like fading memories in sunlight. Bird imagery appears throughout, with Mizuki and Shu shown as white and black birds sometimes even growing wings. It doesn’t feel silly but symbolic, like they’re finally free from their violent lives. Miike uses flashes of fantasy and childhood imagination to show how reconnecting with their past changes how they see the world.

This is still a Miike film so there are flashes of his usual madness, sudden violence, crude humor, and bizarre moments. But unlike his other works these don’t dominate the story. They’re just reminders that the world they left behind is still brutal and messy. The focus stays on friendship, guilt, and the search for peace. By the end the movie becomes quiet again with no big explosion or surreal finale.

Dead or Alive 2: Birds is one of Miike’s most touching works. It still has blood and madness but also warmth, humor, and reflection. It’s about friendship, lost innocence, and the small hope of becoming better even after a life of crime. How gentle and human it is surprised me, and that’s what makes it special.