Plot Outline 42 ninth grade students have to fight for survival on a deserted island, while being watched by a bitter ex-teacher who's back with a vengeance.
Plot Synopsis: Ninth grade students are taken to a small isolated island with a map, food and various arms. They have to fight each other three days long until the last one remains and are forced to wear a special collar which will explode when they break a rule.
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With the Japanese currently leading the way in thought-provoking cinematic violence, it's only fitting that Kinji Fukasaku's Battle Royale is being touted as a Clockwork Orange for the 21st century. Based on the novel by Koshun Takami, the film opens with a series of fleeting images of unruly Japanese schoolchildren, whose bad behavior provides a justification for the "punishments" that will ensue. Once the prequel has been dispensed with, the classmates are drugged and awaken on an island where they find they have been fitted with dog collars that monitor their every move. Instructed by their old teacher ("Beat" Takeshi) with the aid of an upbeat MTV-style video, they are told of their fate: after an impartial lottery they have been chosen to fight each other in a three-day, no-rules contest, the "Battle Royale." Their only chance of survival is through the death of all their classmates.
Some pupils embrace their mission with zeal, while others simply give up or try to become peacemakers and revolutionaries. However, the ultimate drive for survival comes from the desire to protect the one you love. Battle Royale works on many different levels, highlighting the authorities' desperation to enforce law and order and the alienation caused by the generation gap. Whether you consider the film an important social commentary or simply watch it for the adrenaline-fueled violence, this is set to become cult viewing for the computer game generation and beyond. --Nikki Disney
Product Description
With the Japanese currently leading the way in thought-provoking cinematic violence it's only fitting that Kenta Fukasaku's Battle Royale is being touted as A Clockwork Orange for the 21st century. Based on the novel by Koshun Takami, the film opens with a series of fleeting images of unruly Japanese school kids, whose bad behavior provides a justification for the 'punishments' which will ensue. To be honest, anyone who has grown up with Grange Hill will view these aggressive teenagers' acts as pretty moderate, but in the context of Japanese culture, their lack of respect is a challenge to the traditional values of respecting ones elders. Once the prequel has been dispensed with, the classmates are drugged and awaken on an island where they find they have been fitted with dog collars that monitor their every move. Instructed by their old teacher ('Beat' Takeshi) with the aid of an upbeat MTV-style video, they are told of their fate, after an impartial lottery they have been chosen to fight each other in a three-day, no-rules contest, the 'Battle Royale'. Their only chance of survival in the 'Battle' is through the death of all their classmates. Some pupils embrace their mission with zeal, while others simply give up or try to become peacemakers and revolutionaries. However, the ultimate drive for survival comes from the desire to protect the one you love. The film looks like a war-flick on occasions, with intense Apocalypse Now-style imagery (check out the classical score blasted over the tannoys with sweeping shots of helicopters). Yet, Battle Royale works on many different levels, highlighting the authorities' desperation to enforce law and order and the alienation caused by the generation gap. But whether you view the film as an important social commentary or simply enjoy the adrenalin-fuelled violence, this is set to become cult viewing for the computer game generation and beyond. Approx. 109 mins/NTSC/Region 0. Tartan Asia. 2001.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
I have to admit that this movie moved me on many levels. After getting over the initial shock of what is, for very good reason, considered to be not just a violent film but also a very disturbing one in terms of subject - this movie I am convinced is destined to become a cult classic. As mentioned previously, Battle Royale is an unforgiving movie but like all great films there are pockets of resistance and liberation. This exceedingly disturbing and deeply saddening film about watching young kids killing each other out of a primal need to survive should disturb anyone with a shred of humanity left in them. What should be noted is that in this case of art imitating life it opens up a portal of consideration of how people may react in this type of situation and the inherent complexity contained therein.
No matter what critics say about its violence Battle Royale is really a story about character. Based on the novel by Takami Koshun, Battle Royale is provocative on many. One way to see the movie is in terms of a not so distant future Japan (which is this case can stand in as a metaphor to other countries) where the government's trepidation about rampant juvenile delinquency and the a lost generation's blatant disregard for order and the rule of law has caused it seek more immediate and less creative ways to deal with the problem, the solution: the systematic annihilation of teenagers. In this case, selected groups of high school kids are deceived and carted of to an undisclosed location, given weapons and supplies and a mission - to kill each other. In an orgy of blood and gore the last person standing is allowed to go home. This, at least for me, brings up two very difficult questions: Is it a story about extermination or discipline? If it is, what possible benefit can be derived from this?
Returning quickly to the issue of "character," it is interesting to see how director Kinji Fukasaku and writer Kenta Fukasuka bring Takami Koshun's novel to the screen. It is also interesting to see how director Fukasaku controls a herd of cats in a powerhouse cast of 40+ characters that includes Beat Takeshi's rendition of Kitano as well as the portrayal of Shuya (Tatsuya Fujiwara), Noriko (Aki Maeda), Shougo (Taro Yamamoto), Kazou (Masanobu Ando), Mitsuko (Kou Shibasaki) and Takako (by Kill Bill's Chiaki Kuriyama). I was intrigued to seeing how some of the characters reacted to stressful situations that in some places (unless you watch the film at least twice) are lost around the films central motif of extreme ruthlessness and violence.
Needless to say that despite the films wicked cinematography and primitivistic tendencies - it being set in a tropical island and all - not to mention the almost mandatory erotic undertones, it is more than anything, a movie about a society on the verge of imploding. It is noted that Fukasaku's motivations for making the movie transcend politics and society. Dilemma: if your survival rested on you killing your best friends, would you do it? This is the circumstance in Battle Royale and it is a very provocative one. This brutal premise and what happens next is inevitably - a very cruel film. Fukasaku rendition has a Lord of the Fliesesque quality about it. I cannot stress how great a movie this is though. Overall, this is one of the most thought provoking, disturbing, and powerful films released. I was not surprised that this film has not been released in the US but just like the saga of "RINGU" - my guess is that inevitably this film will be hijacked as well - it is the Hollywood way.
Another "layer" to be uncovered from this blood-soaked saga is how Fukasaku calls to question a Japanese society whose rage over youth delinquency (as mentioned previously) and has gone so far to imagine a `final solution.' If it was Fukasaku's intent, it got me thinking that if such a solution were put in place the results would be a fight to the death will be a traumatized, angry and extremely mentally agile mind would be released back on society - making the problem doubly worse - as if the society is cultivating violence. In Battle Royale Fukasaku is thought provoking again in that he allows for pockets of resistance and moments of female empowerment. The sub-plot of hacking in to the system and destroying the whole game and the scenes with Mitsuko (Kou Shibasaki) although not unique add a particular liberating quality to the film. However there still is lingering the disturbing theme of Battle Royale, dealing as it does with the corollary of a system of violence transferred from generation to generation thus perpetuating a cycle of violence. In the end, the hub of the Battle Royale films is that violence without doubt impacts children. Is this what we want as a future for them? A wild, sexy, and thought provoking film that begs to be watched more than one time to be fully appreciated.
Miguel Llora
44 of 47 people found the following review helpful:
SCHOOL FIELD TRIPS WERE NEVER THIS ROUGH!, August 26, 2006
"Battle Royale" is a truly magnificant film, and is highly recommended. There are a bountiful number of reviews here, therefore, I would just like to add that if you have not seen the film, buy it or rent it. I first saw the film a few years ago at the urging of a friend and was not disappointed in the least.
Takeshi Kitano [who better for the role?] stars as the former school teacher who makes it a point early in the film to set the tone by letting the students know that this BATTLE ROYALE is no joke. [I don't want to give the movie away to those who have not seen it yet] And the point Takeshi Kitano makes with a couple of students in the beginning is not lost on the other students. The students must kill each other in order to survive.
Only when one of the students is left standing will the game come to an end. Here you see loyalties and friendships part ways, or strenghten. I like the way Kinji Fukasaku directed the film. This is not like "Lord of the Flies" as I read in one of the reviews. "Battle Royale' is a totally different take on a future 21ST society of ADULTS, that have come to see unruly students as having to be dealt with severely in order to conform to Japanese society that they feel is being threatened. A truly great film. Highly Recommended!
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I am a huge fan of the book, but this movie is only mildly entertaining in comparison. It is good for what the director was aiming for-to adapt it to movie screenplay as a thriller. However, the movie leaves out almost all of the crucial character background stories and key character details, as well as many deep themes. This movie turned a groundbreaking piece of literature into a gorefest, but if you watch it just to enjoy it, without obsessing over accuracy, it is still, in itself, a good movie.
1 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
an action movie that is worth it, January 13, 2007
...to own a copy of this film? This should be a 5 star rating - it's a great movie, and what I've seen of the DVD looks good (watched the feature with decently translated subtitles, good picture/audio, haven't checked out the extras yet). But this is not an official release - the DVD does not mention any distributor and the cover is a copy of the Australian release. In other words, it's a bootleg. Considering how tough it can be to get a hold of Battle Royale, this might be the easiest way to do it (again, it's not a cheap looking copy).
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