It is a movie of epic proportions produced on low-budget scale with some Full Moon Pictures sensibilities. Zeiram 2 is a movie made on a shoestring budget and it looks it. Despite the obvious handcuffs that the lack of dollars presents, the finished product is something to be admired, if not something to actually like. Writer/director Keita Amemiya is able to string together a film that makes sense and that wishes to be a big budget actioner. The concept and story are there for the taking if someone were to make a big time feature out of it. If not, we can always enjoy what's here and fill in the "what ifs" from our own imaginations. Although, I would not begrudge anyone who dislikes the movie, as it really is not all that good, and at times looks downright cheap.
I have never seen the 1991 original film which for some reason was not included in the Keita Amemiya box set. I assume it has something to do with with rights issues. Fortunately, the main thread of the film is simplistic and easy to follow. The most confusing element is the introduction of characters from the first film.
The first film found intergalactic bounty hunter, and all around beauty, Iria (Yuko Moriyama) battling it out with a cyborg creation called Zeiram, a nasty, weapon-filled creation with an organic core. At the conclusion of the feature, Iria wins the battle and Zeiram is believed dead. As we all know, in the world of genre filmmaking, success means sequel, and sequel means pretty much anyone can come back, even from the great beyond. How successful Zeiram was, I am unable to ascertain. The one thing I can make a successful guess at is the film was obviously successful enough to warrant the bankrolling of this 1994 sequel. Granted, it was probably not that much money, but the fact remains; besides, the definition of success is fluid with regard to budget versus profit.
As the sequel begins, we find ourselves in a desert landscape on what I am assuming is an alien world. Alien voices can be heard discussing the work of a new robot soldier. They only need a test with a challenging opponent. Do you know who that could be? That's right, Iria. This leads directly into the opening sequence, featuring poor computer graphics showing the creation of what we come to know as the new Zeiram. It features an organic core in the visage of a creepy white face in its chest plate.
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