BERSERK MOVIE 2: BATTLE FOR DOLDREY

Berserk: Golden Egg Arc 2: Battle for Doldrey
Released By: Manga Entertainment
Rating: 15
Running Time: 80 Mins
Audio: English & Japanese DD 5.1
Release Date: 12/8/2013
Reviewed By: Sandra Scholes

Now that Griffith has been given a title, and his band of men are destined for greater things, the idea of becoming more than he had ever imagined has gone to his head, making him feel almost immortal, unstoppable, but still there are trust issues some of the men have with Guts as he is their newest member of the Hawks. The king plans a battle against the might of Chuder's armies - their prize if Guts and Griffith manage to pull off their siege, is the taking of Doldrey castle and ultimate control.

Griffith wants to feel as though he and his band of men are invaluable to the king as he has an inner need to ascend to greatness. It is  hard to work out whether this need is due to the Behelit around his neck, or some personal goal he has had since childhood. Though Guts seems to be the Hawks mascot, due to what the monster in the castle frrom the previous movie said to him about Griffith's ambition dooming him, he has wondered whether he should still be with the band, or go on his own path to better his life. So far he has heeded Griffith's order of being his from the last time they fought and Griffith won, but sooner or later he wants to make his own decisions.

When the Hawks are busy fighting Chuder's armies, Casca gets into a bad situation with one of their generals, and Guts has to save her, cue him and her falling from a cliff edge, leaving the others wondering whether they are alive or dead. While Guts is trying to heal her wounds, Casca falls into a dream sequence where we see her past of being near brutally raped by a warrior who finds her. Luckily she is rescued by a young Griffith who takes her into his band.

As the story has been split into three separate movies, there is more time to get onto the battle, as most of this movie does indeed revolve around the battle for Doldrey. There is also more  importance put on Griffith's wanting to get the king's daughter to be his, and he might get his chance alone with her. Though Griffith pretends to be a consumate gentleman, he has done some evil things in order to get power, has used others, ordered others to be killed, and left Guts wondering whether he might become someone else he can use for his own ends. Guts doesn't discover how invaluable he is to the Band of the Hawk, it's us who see it first hand through Griffith and his men.

The story is improved on, the characters look better, though the battle sequences look as though they have been taken from The Lord of the Rings movies. Berserk Movie 2: Battle for Doldrey is available on DVD and Blu-ray on the 12th of August.

Bonus Material: None.

Verdict: The high production quality and cinematic experience give this a whole new angle from the original anime series.