The Shepherd Code II: Road Back opens in UK cinemas beginning September 19, and will release on Digital worldwide from October 9.
Actor and martial artist Alan Delabie returns with The Shepherd Code II: Road Back, a film I wasn’t particularly expectant of after the first film but still took to curiousity with a follow-up otherwise happening. The Shepherd Code had its hang-ups, for sure, and so it begs asking if anything’s changed with the second installement.
Indeed, some things have. Delabie is re-joined by co-star Michael Morris for a continuation that’s a little more polished in presentation. Don “The Dragon” Wilson regroups with the two, adding to a roster that also lists Shaina “The Samuraider” West, and Mark Strange of Ip Man 4 fame, in addition to cameos by Rochelle Ashana and Haskell V. Anderson III, better known from their roles in the 1989 classic, Kickboxer.
Piecing it all together is a story that finds our titular hitman, Alex (Delabie) en route to what he presumes could be a better life following the tragedy he faced in the first film. When he learns that his friend Lewis (Wilson) suddenly disappears, Alex regroups with fellow cohort Matt (Morris) in a trip to the UK where they learn that an old enemy from their past named DuMont (Michael McKell) has come back from the dead to collect on their lives and re-emerge with his organization.
Delabie and Morris pair up for this one behind the lens as well in directing and scripting. The story is simple enough to follow and the acting is modest to low brow at times, and the action, while enticing, leaves a little to be desired while faring better in some areas in the second half. Delabie continues to show he can move and look apt in screenfighting, and provides a serviceable fight finale with Strange who plays Sanders, Dumont’s bloodhound who has his own vengeful ideations. West shines in her own capacity as Daniels’s UK connection, Jessica, who’s also multi-faceted in her specialty of kicking ass, and kudos to @thatphatsamuraiguy himself, Preston Downey for making headway in a film within my coverage purview. Do follow the guy on YouTube as well!
Pacing tends to get hampered often by a lot of the passable acting, and a script that doesn’t feel fully developed at times, and overdone flashbacks that attempt to emphasize Alex’s internal struggles as a plot device. Depending on your own tastes, it may be enough to keep you interested in what the rest of The Shepherd Code II: Road Back has to tell, while hopefully not exhausting all its avenues of fun and fanservice before the credits roll.
