Mononoke the Movie Chapter II Review
Director: Kenji Nakamura and Kiyotaka Suzuki
Date Created: 2025-08-14 19:13
4.5
Mononoke the Movie Chapter II Review: Directed by Kenji Nakamura and Kiyotaka Suzuki, with a screenplay by Yasumi Atarashi, Mononoke Movie 2: Hinezumi is the second part of Netflix’s animated trilogy of the mythic Medicine Seller character. Starring Hiroshi Kamiya, Haruka Tomatsu, Tomoyo Kurosawa, Yoko Hikasa, Yuki Kaji, Cho, Kenyu Horiuchi, and many more, this 1-hour 14-minute Japanese animated movie is a month after the previous one. While the first chapter (The Phantom in the Rain) handled a spectre born of guilt, the second chapter explores anger, class prejudice, and the power of goodness, and a short-tempered guardian spirit is at the forefront of it.
Mononoke the Movie Chapter II Review
If the first film felt like a dreamlike mystery come true, Mononoke the Movie: Chapter 2 is more like a burning scroll that unfurls to reveal the depths of politics, betrayal, and individual sacrifice. Lady Fuki is a concubine who’s caught the Emperor’s eye and is carrying his child, something that the power-crazed elite of the Ooku simply cannot abide because she is a merchant family woman. That bigotry unleashes a chain of schemes, betrayals, and even plots on the life of her unborn child. And before her foes can act on any of that, a guardian appears, a guardian spirit named Hinezumi, born of the lingering emotions of another woman betrayed by the same system years before.
What I loved most about this chapter is how it weaves together political tension and supernatural horror without ever making you feel like you are being rushed. Netflix’s Mononoke the Movie 2 doesn’t just give you a ghost haunting bad people; it gives you a reason why the ghost must exist in the first place. Lady Suzu’s tragic history, a woman whose child was taken away from her by the schemes of corrupt officials, gives the Hinezumi’s rage a moving depth. It’s not “evil” rage; it’s rage of protection. And that is where the movie really got me.
Visually, this film is as gorgeous as its predecessor, if not more so. Each frame is filled with subtle textures, colour, and angles that remind you of a hand-painted painting. You can pause at almost any point, and it would be a painting. I have no idea how the animators achieve this look without compromising on clarity, but it’s mesmerising. The interior of the Ooku: its corridors, sliding doors, and darkened alcoves, is more than a set; it’s a living, breathing entity that watches the drama. And when the third-act battle between the Medicine Seller and the Hinezumi erupts, the animation breaks into sheer visual chaos in the best possible sense of the word.
Thematologically, Mononoke the Movie: Chapter II – The Ashes of Rage examines classism, patriarchy, and the absence of solidarity among women in oppressive systems. The political figures here are not cartoonish moustache-twirling villains, they are unjust because they are convinced they are “protecting” tradition by keeping the common classes out of power. It’s infuriating, because you see smart, capable women like Lady Botan trying to play by the rules while being assailed by men (and occasionally women) who are more concerned with control than justice. As a modern viewer watching this, it’s hard not to rage, which is the idea.
Also Read: Andhera Review: Ambitious Horror Series That Gets Lost in the Shadows
Pacing is restrained but never stagnant. There are moments of contemplation where characters reflect on their past or grapple with impossible choices, and then outbursts of mayhem when the Hinezumi strike. That rhythm had me sitting on the edge of my seat because I never thought I had a clue when things were going to get ugly. And when they do, the score of composer Taku Iwasaki erupts in a fury that makes those scenes hit with actual impact.
One of the things I’ve always observed is the way the Medicine Seller is such a fascinating character without ever commandeering the centre of the stage. He’s not the emotional core of the story, Lady Fuki and Lady Suzu insist on it, but his objective, detached approach to cutting through to the heart of the spirit is somehow reassuring. His quasi-ritualistic recitation of the “Form, Truth, and Reason” needed to cleanse a Mononoke sends shivers, and when he finally unsheathes his sword, it’s a visual and emotional peak.
If I’m being nitpicky, I guess that the film’s hyperfocus on Ooku politics would be overwhelming to fans who are looking for more supernatural action. There’s just too much succession rights, guardianship, and social standing argumentation, and if you’re not paying close attention, you can lose track of who’s in bed with whom. But to me, I totally loved this layering of politics because it made the supernatural payoff that much more rewarding. The spirit attacks aren’t random; they’re directly related to human greed and prejudice, and so that means each attack is that much more rewarding.
Performance-wise, the voice acting is flawless. For other animated films, I can “hear” the difference between the actor and the animated character’s voice, but here performances are so blended that I forgot that there were real actors behind them. That’s not something you usually get, and it keeps you in the universe of the Japanese animation film Mononoke.
By the end, without revealing too much, the fate of some of the corrupt officials is revealed. Let’s just say it is satisfying in a poetic justice type of way. The last scenes provide a glimpse of what the next movie will be, Mononoke the Movie: Chapter III – The Curse of the Serpent, and I’m already curious where it will lead. If the first movie was about guilt and the second was about anger, I can only speculate what emotional hurricane the third will unleash.
Mononoke the Movie: Chapter II – The Ashes of Rage Review: Summing Up
So, did I like Mononoke the Movie: Chapter II? Yes. Not only is it a stunning work of animation, but it’s a compelling tale of injustice, of power, and of the unseen forces, human and supernatural, that arise against cruelty. It’s not an “easy” experience to watch; it makes you listen, makes you angry, and makes you think about the systems that persist today in new guise. But that is what makes it so powerful.
Also Read: Fixed Review: Wild, Over-the-Top Dog Comedy That’s as Silly as It Is Sweet
