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Death Note 2: The Last Name

Play trailer Poster for Death Note 2: The Last Name 2006 2h 20m Drama Horror Play Trailer Watchlist
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80% Tomatometer 5 Reviews 83% Popcornmeter 10,000+ Ratings
College student Yagami (Kenichi Matsuyama) possesses a Death Note, a magical notebook that kills anyone whose name is written on its pages. Though he tries to use the notebook only to wipe out criminals, he's tempted to use it for less noble purposes. Yagami's life is complicated by a police investigation, led by the determined teen detective L , into the identity of a vigilante killer. TV star Miss Amane , who also holds a Death Note, proves equally troublesome.

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Death Note 2: The Last Name

Critics Reviews

View All (5) Critics Reviews
Empire Magazine Rated: 3/5 Jul 4, 2008 Full Review Don Willmott Filmcritic.com clever Rated: 3/5 Feb 4, 2009 Full Review Luke Y. Thompson OC Weekly It's like Infernal Affairs/The Departed crossed with Devilman, Primal Fear and Drop Dead Fred. If that combination doesn't scream "Watch me!" to you, well, you're wrong. Dec 30, 2008 Full Review Matthew Turner ViewLondon Rated: 3/5 Jul 18, 2008 Full Review Anton Bitel Film4 A pity that Kaneko's direction is once again too workaday to fashion such strong material into a truly engaging visual experience. Jun 30, 2008 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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thomas b The second addition to Japan's live action DEATH NOTE trilogy is one of the most clever and intriguing films to get released overseas in 2006. The original is one of my most favorite Asian films of all time. At first, I thought this sequel was even better, but after a current revisit, it's difficult to say which film is superior. Special effects were limited back in 2006, so the film is forced to rely on it's hyperintelligence and quick-witted scenarios to transcend. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Gianmarco R This film is even more beautiful than the previous one because it introduces new themes and has a very fast pace that keeps you glued to the screen and never tires you. The only flaw is the ending that after such a well-thought-out film is slightly pulled away and seems made to finish the film as soon as possible. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 09/13/21 Full Review Audience Member Like the preceding chapter, this movie looks and sounds like a cheap soap opera, but despite this, and its 140 minute runtime, it's completely edge-of-your-seat captivating, as the intellectual story mechanics are absolute top-notch, as are the psychological elements. This includes both the psychological implications of the Death Note concept in principle/practice, but also how the central characters move their own intellectual chess pieces across the board (metaphorically). L might be the singularly most intelligent character I have ever seen, as he is successfully able to figure out who is killing people by simply writing names into a book (the method he himself is not even sure of while he undergoes his investigation), and he is able to triumph in the end. Unlike before, this story has a definitive conclusion, and while it's not quite the ending I might've liked, it's certainly a very good one that follows through on the story structure and thematic elements. It's smart, but it's easy to follow, and frequently it gets a bit over the top but in a good way. Like the first movie, while the anime might be superior (potentially - I don't know myself), this is highly recommended on its own merits. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 01/23/23 Full Review Audience Member This movie is one of those sequels which is better than the first! An amazing experience. The first movie and this are an absolute MUST for death note fans! And oh my god, the ending. The ending to this movie is better than the anime and mangas. The characters and story were amazing. Ryuk is also so good in this movie. Especially at the end he made me laugh! Highly recommended! Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/17/23 Full Review Audience Member Death Note 2 The last name is the continuation of the live action movie tackling the story of the manga and anime of the same name. It tells the other half of the story of Death Note starting from when Amane Misa gets her own death note and arranges to find Kira, until the end, but with a slight twist as in this movie L triumphs over Light by sacrificing his life in order to expose him. This pretty much has the same tone of the original movie, it even has the same rushed facing as the original, and fortunately I don't think this movie is bad, but it's not good either, it's just decent, it's not good it's not that bad imo. Pros: -Follows directly from the first films events and adds a twist of events like the original -Has a different ending than the anime and the manga -Near and that entire plotline is not introduced -L wins, let's celebrate L fans -Ending song bangs Cons: -Amane Misa is still alive for potential sequals, mainly just for light up the new world lol -Still some shaky acting -Light does not like a college student, dude looks like he's in his 30's, well it is what it is, its the same with the first one as well I just forgot to put it in -Still has that same fast pacing from the original film Overall Death Note 2 The last name is a decent enough continuation from the first film, but I have to give it a 6, since I'm not a fan of Amane Misa still being there till the end of whatever happens in future films. I prefer the first one to this as well imo. I would also not recommend this movie for people as well, unless you watched the original and want to see the continuation then go ahead, but besides that there are better movies out there, this one barely got a 6 for me, stick with anime and the manga dudes it's much better. I will continue watching and reviewing the movie franchise of death note since I'm curious about Light up the New World, so stay tuned for more reviews. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 01/23/23 Full Review Audience Member the best but its different ending in manga Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/14/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Death Note 2: The Last Name

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Cast & Crew

Movie Info

Synopsis College student Yagami (Kenichi Matsuyama) possesses a Death Note, a magical notebook that kills anyone whose name is written on its pages. Though he tries to use the notebook only to wipe out criminals, he's tempted to use it for less noble purposes. Yagami's life is complicated by a police investigation, led by the determined teen detective L , into the identity of a vigilante killer. TV star Miss Amane , who also holds a Death Note, proves equally troublesome.
Director
Shusuke Kaneko
Producer
Noritaka Yamaji, Yoshitaka Hori, Shinichiro Nishigaki, Fumihiro Hirai, Kazusa Kitagami, Teruki Matsumoto, Shigeki Oosawa
Screenwriter
Tetsuya Oishi
Production Co
My Theater D.D., Inc.
Genre
Drama, Horror
Original Language
Japanese
Release Date (Streaming)
Mar 7, 2019
Runtime
2h 20m
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