Post by Multiplex Manner on May 13, 2004 16:27:11 GMT -5
OK, I orginally wrote a detailed review that was lost due to my computer crashing, so forgive me if this is a bit half-hearted.
I recently saw this Japanese film adapted from a novel by Kenta Fukasaku, and I loved it. The basic premise is - selected by a random lottery, a class from a random school is sent off to a remote island, each student is given a weapon, and then they are put into a 3-day Battle Royale in which they must kill eachother.
Depending on your mood and optimism, on hearing that pitch you screamed 'Woo! Talk about underground cult film!' or 'No! Another mindless action film!'. Well, the result is somewhere inbetween. BR has its fair share of action, but it also holds a real cult status due to its originality.
Kinji Fukasaku directs the film brilliantly, swapping quickly - and bravely - from explosive to frightening to disturbing and occasionally laugh-out-loud hilarious. Takeshi Kitano is excellent as the kids' psychotic, vengeful teacher. It's hard to fault any other performances, all the main child actors were pretty good.
We follow the three main heroes - Shuya, Noriko and Kawada - as they fight to survive in the twisted game. The other classmates are killed off in a series of hugely varied ways, including suicide, explosions and decapitation. This keeps the film very watchable and prevents it from ever dragging.
If BR suffers from anything, it might be too many characters. After all, 42 kids and a crazy teacher is a lot for three days. A lot of characters are given only one or two scenes in which they must portray a LOT of backstory, and then they die. Although, this is probably a common problem when adapting a novel.
All in all, Battle Royale is one of the most original and inventive films I've seen in a while. It really makes you want to read the book, which is something LoTR didn't do...why am I comparing BR to LoTR? I don't know....
Anyway, if you get a chance to watch this film then take it - it's truly a gem.
I recently saw this Japanese film adapted from a novel by Kenta Fukasaku, and I loved it. The basic premise is - selected by a random lottery, a class from a random school is sent off to a remote island, each student is given a weapon, and then they are put into a 3-day Battle Royale in which they must kill eachother.
Depending on your mood and optimism, on hearing that pitch you screamed 'Woo! Talk about underground cult film!' or 'No! Another mindless action film!'. Well, the result is somewhere inbetween. BR has its fair share of action, but it also holds a real cult status due to its originality.
Kinji Fukasaku directs the film brilliantly, swapping quickly - and bravely - from explosive to frightening to disturbing and occasionally laugh-out-loud hilarious. Takeshi Kitano is excellent as the kids' psychotic, vengeful teacher. It's hard to fault any other performances, all the main child actors were pretty good.
We follow the three main heroes - Shuya, Noriko and Kawada - as they fight to survive in the twisted game. The other classmates are killed off in a series of hugely varied ways, including suicide, explosions and decapitation. This keeps the film very watchable and prevents it from ever dragging.
If BR suffers from anything, it might be too many characters. After all, 42 kids and a crazy teacher is a lot for three days. A lot of characters are given only one or two scenes in which they must portray a LOT of backstory, and then they die. Although, this is probably a common problem when adapting a novel.
All in all, Battle Royale is one of the most original and inventive films I've seen in a while. It really makes you want to read the book, which is something LoTR didn't do...why am I comparing BR to LoTR? I don't know....
Anyway, if you get a chance to watch this film then take it - it's truly a gem.
yet to see the sequel...
