Eye for an Eye 2 (2024)

Strong follow-up to the original

Eye for an Eye 2 was a loose sequel to the original with Xie Miao reprising his role as the blind swordsman Cheng. This time around he ended up with a vengeful pint-sized sidekick bent on revenge.

Zhang Xiao Yu and her brother Cao are saved by Blind Cheng. When Cao later meets an untimely death, she dogs Cheng until he agrees to help her avenge her brother. The demon swordsman is none too happy about the determined child and tries numerous ways to rid himself of her.

Gender note: I’m going to refer to Xiao Yu as she/her because the character was played by a girl and Xiao Yu looked like a typical crossdressing girl in Chinese dramas and films despite what the synopsis says and it literally makes no difference story wise.

You can absolutely watch this film if you haven’t watched the first film. Much as in the first film, Cheng was a cranky blind swordsman who made his living as a bounty hunter. Xiao Yu found ways to assist him in hopes he’d teach her how to kill the object of her hatred-Li Jiu Lang. Cheng was once again forced to summon the demon within as he battled hundreds of warriors at one time. And much like Fezzik from The Princess Bride, he only stumbled when fighting one man.

The story slowed down long enough to have some cute moments with Xiao Yu acting as Cheng’s eyes while hunting his bounties. In one of the few scripted "humorous" moments, it emphasized the weakness of the film's premise. Xiao Yu rearranged the furniture causing Cheng to bump into things and fall when he never had a problem in completely strange environments fighting bad guys.

The smaller fights were better choreographed. Despite Xie Miao being a martial artist, wires were used prolifically. His skills definitely helped sell the moves though. The large fights were less entertaining as they were sped up and filmed up close. I suppose it made the outrageous odds Cheng faced better able to swallow. As I said in my EfaE1 review, if you can buy into a blind swordsman bounty hunter, fighting 300 men single-handedly wasn’t much of a stretch. This film wasn’t afraid to lean into the bone crunching and slicing sound effects.

I enjoyed Eye for an Eye 2. It might not have broken any new ground, but the slow build of Cheng and Xiao Yu’s relationship was fun to watch and the actors had a nice rapport with each other. And Cheng certainly knew how to make an entrance when Xiao Yu was in need. If you enjoyed Eye for an Eye 1, this is definitely worth a try.

10 September 2026

Trigger warnings: Child murder and pet murder. As expected, numerous bloody impalements.

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I can’t speak high enough of the young girl who played the FL. Incredible!

Yang Enyou is a Revelation. It would be an absolute travesty if Yang Enyou (who plays the young orphan, Zhang Xiaoyu) does not become a global megastar after this. Her performance is truly, unbelievably brilliant. In a genre often dominated by stoic fighters, she brings a raw, visceral vulnerability that anchors the entire film. You don’t just watch her pain and anger, you feel it in every single frame she occupies. She goes toe-to-toe with martial arts veteran Xie Miao and in many scenes, completely steals the spotlight. Her ability to convey that level of soul-crushing grief and white-hot rage at such a young age is nothing short of a masterclass in acting.
The only reason this isn’t a perfect 10 is that it is occasionally very difficult to stomach. Even for a gritty revenge thriller, the level of violence directed at a child is extreme. Seeing a young girl get gang-beaten, kicked, strangled and even poisoned is incredibly heavy and may be too much for some viewers. While it successfully fuels the fire for the eventual revenge, those specific scenes are undeniably brutal.
The sequel manages to surpass the original by adding a profound emotional core. Watch it for the top-tier action, but stay for the legendary performance by Yang Enyou. If this is the start of her career, the sky is the limit.

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