Area 88, Vol. 2: A Lonely Crossing of Paths
As the airborne dramaArea 88continues, the filmmakers begin to  develop the main characters more fully. Ace fighter pilot Shin Kazama,  who has "eyes like a wounded wolf," is shot down in battle and  parachutes into a sandstorm. Wandering through the desert, he recalls  how his friend Kanzaki had him shanghaied into the mercenary corps.  Shin rarely communicates beyond flashing a thumbs-up sign, so  flashbacks are the only way to learn anything about him. Photographer  Makoto Shinjou remains at the base, taking pictures of Shin. They're  joined by Kitri Parvaneh, a daredevil female pilot who asks such  improbable questions as, "Do all Asian men have such mysterious eyes?"  Kaoru Shintani's original manga was written decades ago, and  his cold war-era story of a taciturn hero battling an unnamed foe feels  dated. (Rated TV PG, suitable for ages 12 and older: violence, tobacco  and alcohol use)--Charles Solomon