I don't know if I would call it sexist but it certainly uses sex to sell copies. Now, I don't actually have a problem with that, as I think people go crazy with what "sexist" means, but please don't throw words like "liberated" in there as a counter. Bayonetta is as much about sex as a selling tool as any of those other Japanese games people attack so often. Trying to rationalize that away because you like the game changes nothing. She doesn't do stripper moves or torture angels because she's secure in her femininity, she does it because the creators thought it was sexy and that it would attract guys.
Personally, it's part of why I found the first game goofy and annoying, despite the gameplay. It felt silly and made me feel like the characters were idiots. That's why I never finished the game, I simply did not care about what the game was doing or where it was taking me. And that's fine, the game just wasn't to my tastes, that doesn't mean I think it was bad or wrong.
As far as sexist goes, I'll worry about that when I see women turn out in droves to protest Magic Mike 2.
