|
|
In this darkly satirical fable on the hysteria around youth crime, veteran 70 year old director Fukasaku Kinji returns to the themes and social statements that have characterised his entire oeuvre. Films like Graveyard of Honour and Humanity or The Wolf, The Pig and the Man juxtapose mindless violence with sharp satirical comment, and this melding is in evidence in Battle Royale. The director's trademark combination of violent energy and dynamic handheld cinematography resurfaces, whilst continuing to comment on the social and cultural pressures at play in contemporary Japanese society.
The film's apocalyptic vision (it is set in the near future) and themes of moral and social decline justifiably recall Golding's Lord of the Flies or A Clockwork Orange, whilst the undercurrent of trust, loyalty and friendship between some of the teenagers offers an optimism amidst the state-induced nihilism. That the film has forced the Japanese parliament to discuss the issues raised is a testament not just to Kinji's vitality and innovation, but also proves emblematic of a society increasingly at odds with itself when portrayed on screen. (Battle Royale is an interesting companion piece to Audition; in that film the young attack the old; here the roles are reversed).
For the first hour at least, this is a brilliantly structured film that never pauses for breath. From the terrifying beginnings at the island base, where the children's mission is outlined and the weapons distributed, to the shockingly banal distancing device of a computer readout telling us who has just been killed and how many remain, the narrative effortlessly portrays the fears and emotions of the children. Only in its last quarter does the pace flag and the narrative dissolve into woolly subplots about computer hacking and double crossing, letting down a tightly-coiled and intriguing premise.
The performances are also strong, especially from Beat Takeshi. Aficionados of his yakuza films will recognise his trademark lolloping gait, his twitching cheek muscles and blend of paternal goodness and ice-cool brutality. Imbued with a certain humanity (he eats cookies, misses his kids and was once presumably a good teacher), his elaborate death scene is perfectly in tune with the film's themes of absurdity and poignancy amidst serial killing. Because our focus on the students is constantly shifting, we understandably have less of a connection with them. Fujiwara and Maeda may be the 'heroes', but only because they survive; the rest of the class either die off-screen or are killed due to mutual mistrust and internal squabbling - they are all mere statistics in the game, devoid of backstory or anything other than a cursory caricature.
The mise-en-scene is suitably stylised. The images are beautifully shot by Katsumi Yanagijima, the verdant lushness of the island is a perfect counterpoint to the ensuing bloodshed. This poignancy is reinforced by the playing of classical music over the tannoy - Mozart and Bach vying for attention over the explosions and screams - and humour is also employed both as a pressure release and a dark addition to the carnage (one student trying to defeat a machete with a dustbin lid or Kitano doing tai-chi with cigarette in mouth). Brutal as the violence may be, its cartoon-ish exaggerations and sheer magnitude remove some of its starkness. Yes, the death scenes are elaborate, and will satisfy the gun fetishist, and perversely, the fountains of blood look somehow gorgeous, but their arresting nature diminishes as the film develops. and yet that is perhaps Kinji's point; a fable on teenage violence and excess couched in typically dramatic and visceral terms - it is the message, not the means, that counts.
Destined to become this year's definitive film maudit, Battle Royale bristles with an inventive energy rarely witnessed in Western cinema and further reinforces the boldness of Japanese cinema. Critics have already implored us to take the film seriously but not literally, while Kinji himself remains convinced that it is essentially a fable. Indeed, the film's concluding line, "Run!", seems as apt a metaphor as any for Kinji's clarion call to the youth of Japan. Brutal as the violence is, the film's strong, humanist message is never displaced.
Reviewed by Ben McCann
Reader comments about Battle Royale
Marta (marta_munuera@hotmail.com) writes:
This film is great. I really love it. It's not only boys and girls fighting. We see their feelings. And the music suits the film. The performances are very good. Kitano is wonderful.
Sorry if my English isn't good (I'm Spanish).
Amy (amy416@hotmail.com) writes:
I know there's a Battle Royale t-shirt out there. I've seen it. If anyone knows where I can find it, please fill me in!
Jay Bugden (jaybugden@hotmail.com) writes:
I really want to know the Dragon Ash song that is used for the end credits, i love it anybody out there please help me
Aron (aronw7@yahoo.com) writes:
>I really want to know the Dragon Ash song that is used for the end credits, i love it anybody out there please help me
The song is called "Shizukana Hibi no Kaidan Wo" and is available on the sounds section of the marvellous fansite www.battleroyale.allhere.com
xeset (mikesamaras@another.com) writes:
Does anyone know where i can get a copy of this - or see a copy of it? I'm near Slough in Berkshire. When it came out it was showing in a gand total of ZERO cinemas within a 60 mile radius [as far as i could tell]
Thanks guys - use the email address above or check out my site...
:: http://www.filmrice.co.uk
Ye (Email address withheld) writes:
This is the most disturbing Movie I've ever seen, but definitely the best also. Although the plot is so unrealistic, the the realism in the reactions of the students is both captivating and terrifying. It made me look into myself and have a deeper clearer understanding of myself and the ppl around. Wow, what a piece of Art.
Hannah (oops_i_shot_myself@hotmail.com) writes:
Hey...i REALLY want the Tshirt and poster. If anyone knows where I can get either, please email me and you will be my god forever! Thx.
cal (Email address withheld) writes:
Merchandise... loads of goodies were given away at the last Edinburgh film fest including posters, t-shirts, badges and coolest of all umbrellas. The bad news is that the people who got them were those who turned up last but let in first. The hundreds of people who got their tickets in advance and likewise turned up on time were shown through the door after the freebies were unpacked and handed out to those in the late queue. Yah boo hiss. Such unpunctual folk probably threw their promotional rain beaters away once used. grrr. great film, though.
Adam (Email address withheld) writes:
A brilliant film, one i would never pick off the shelf but recommended from a friend it was definately worth it. It has to be a film nearly everyone should. It has a weird affect on you, as you picture all your friend and what would happen etc. Action packed through out, a one of a kind movie, not to missed.
Jason (jreed@blueyonder.co.uk) writes:
What a great film. Exciting, disturbing, thought provoking, you name it - its got it. I will always be grateful to the friend who recommended it to me. I am still haunted by the closing credits during which you saw the schoolchildren when they were still innocent, then you remember what they had to do to one another. With the music by Dragon Ash - WOW!
Alex (Email address withheld) writes:
A thoroughly enthralling and thought-provoking film that makes a chilling comment on society at large. The violence is not overly done, as with films such as Total Recall, making this film less of a bloodbath than some might let on to you. But this only serves to focus one's attention more on the characters and their internal struggles, instead of dousing the message in a directorial bloodlust. Brilliant pieces of farce in the Battle Royale video and Kitano's death scene help to alleviate the morbidity that otherwise might have strangled the film somewhat. Entertaining, disturbing and poignant all at once, this film is a worthy addition to any film buff's collection.
Retina (retina@suckmyrichard.co.uk) writes:
The most disturbing thing about this moronic and juvenile film is that people talk intelligently about how bold and clever it is. It does not take great wit and vision to create chilling images. The extended killfest, and repeated scenes of horrified innocents experiencing the worst that can be inflicted on sentient animals was no more than masturbation. I was expecting a lengthy burning-to-death scene or maybe a good bit of artistic gang-raping. I desperately want to read the book this is based on as there has to be some kind of meaning to the story that was lost in the director's sadism. However, from what I can tell, either the film took ludicrous liberties with the storyline or the plot is more holy than my socks. Who could entertain the idea that normal human citizens would EVER allow something like the 'BR Act' to come into force? If culling was deemed necessary then far more humane, concealable and CHEAP methods would be employed. If they REALLY wanted to make a big game of it, Running-Man style then why wouldn't the kids already know about it? How the crap would this have been kept a secret? No, this film was nothing more than self-gratifying shock drivel, relying on a weakly justified premise to allow audiences to observe agony, horror and the absolute corruption of innocence through torture without having to pay anything in return save the cost of the entry fee or DVD and a small portion of their own innocence for a few days at least. If people really wish to explore the dark side of humanity then there are more than enough well documented accounts of the true horrors of humanity throughout the ages (do a little research on Vlad the Impaler, or medeival torture techniques, or, for that matter MODERN torture techniques), and if people really get into it then there's plenty more explicit pain and suffering depicted on film. But please, are we really so naive that we find images of psychological torture profound and epiphany-inducing? Are we really so blind to our own nature that we need a violent film to make us self-aware? No. Sure we all have a little blood-lust in us. These things are fascinating, but they are NOT art. The camera work was good and clear, and I acknowledge that the directing of shooting was of a high callibre, but there was nothing truly remarkable in these respects. I would also offer praise in that though the kid doing the hacking looked as though he'd never touched a computer before in his life, at least there was some actual meaningful programming flying about on his screen, as opposed to the usual techno-drivel we usually see (see The Recruit). However that said the "Oh no! Hackers! How many? I don't know, too many connections! ..." scene was about the most laughable diatribe of cack I've ever heard in my life: films, books, tv, radio and real-life techie-wannabes. But now I'm just nit picking. If you want a mind fuck see something like Being John Malkovich. If you want blood curdling screams see Videodrome (just one, towards the end). If you want to see little Japanese girls butchered look up super-hardcore Hentai on the web, if you want to know about the horrors of war/torture etc goto www.everything2.net and look for the writeup about the account of a real-life impaling from a few centuries ago, and if you want to discover dark things about your personality then sit alone and write (or just imagine) the most despicable horrific things that could happen to a conscious sensitive entity, and keep going until you have to stop. If you want to make a book or film out of it then go ahead, but don't kid yourself that you're some kind of agent of enlightenment, awakening the masses to the truth about violence. We already know. It's just that some of us get off on it enough to try to justify it as art.
DisqPlay (Email address withheld) writes:
There's a reason why the students themselves didn't know much about BR when the mass media seem so interested in it. Indifference. It's not good to generalalize but a lot of Japanese youths are different to Japan. They may know everything about pop idols, but when it comes to their society, they could care less about it. But then again, this is the same with many, many young people in the world today - and this is exactly what the old-generation-politicians want. I thought that's what the director wanted to get through in BR. Just my two cents...
Aatif (atomic_ray@hotmail.com) writes:
Battle royale was a wicked film alot of sorrow and blood takeplace i saw it last night lol my dad let me watch it lol im learning to speak japanese ive started speaking japanese a month ago and im ok at it but i need a real pure japanese person to help me and the song at the end of the film was nice any of u who are real japanese loverse please add me on to ur MSN address coz i need to talk to u thanx
Dan (Email address withheld) writes:
Saw Dolls and then wanted more from same people so trying this... If uve seen this then watch dolls! Its the best movie ive seen.. movies are like music - the top 40 is rubbish and there as business but the real stuff is art - and far far better.
manga_fan (Email address withheld) writes:
i think that u all need 2 read the book, because the director didn't put some things in the movie that were important to understand why some things happened (like the fact that the whole thing appeared on tv, and that the kids knew about it)
the books are great
kim (Email address withheld) writes:
in reply to retina's essay:
some good points made there but battle royale is considered to be art because of the story it tells and kinji's decision to tell that story in this way. the point is that the society is on the point of collapse and the government's used up all their other options - the extent to which they are prepared to go to get their message across to the youth is the reason behind the BR act. the blood and gore used in the film is just the background to the real message: quote the film's tagline, "could you kill your best friend?" That's the real point of the film and its put across through the way the kids react to the situation they find themselves in. its also showing what happens to each of the kids as they kill each other off - the most significant scenes are the death scenes of chigusa and mitzuko. i havent read the book so can't comment on that but i've got the film on dvd and i think the point kinji was trying to make is very important. apart from the story, the music, mainly classical, is a revelation (check out the soundtrack - available on cdjapan.co.jp).
andy (Email address withheld) writes:
Battle Royale, in my humble opinion was meant to show through mindless and constant violence just ow stupid and futile violence is.i say futile because, at the end of it all, you've survived physically, but the survivor would be a nut! there life would be ruined. just look at the crazy guy with the uzi who kills for fun, and the grinning girl at the start, even the god guy, Nanaharra is mad, do you think these people went on to lead happy and fruitful lives?. point is, there's nothing gained, when you way up your sanity against your life, they'reboth just as important. the point of the film eing that violence is sensless, i see the plot and its'devices as pure justification, and the fact that it's kids incolved as a way of making this even more apparent. what's worse, a forty year old man losing his head, a schoolgirl getting stabbed to death? the humour is there to disgust us. what's funny about what's happeneing? to make you disgusted for laughing. possibly as a response to the slick, adorable violence often shown on tv and in films.maybe i'm wrong, but, hey.
cherry (leMarionnetteMaster@hotmail.com) writes:
Good art needs an element of confusion. There is major difference when it comes to fine art and expression. Art as expression has many entrances. Yet a good way in is fear and confussion. Humans terrify me, socity terrifes me. Retina is totally right, we cant deny the amount of shear messed up crap that isn’t written in our history books, yet we cant deny the fact that each one of us likes a good story. BR interested me to the extent I even like it. I enjoyed how warped it was. And I enjoyed that because none of it was true.
There is some level of intelligence in BR in the fact that the script is (I think) unique. A lot of the public have a love; hate issue with films like these. Though you enjoy it, it appears you must remind yourself of the “reality” that is these are children fighting for there lives by committing the mass homicide of there own class mates. Well…the pleasure I get out of this is simple, this isn’t real, I think whenever a film gets this close to our modern culture we begin take it more seriously, try and find the lesson’s in it. A lot of people are insecure, sacred and blatantly terrified of society and what our civilization cloud become in the not so distant future. However don’t go looking for lesson’s or meaning in BR. I’m only fourteen so the to me this film was in practice taking the piss out of humanity, especially our education system. You have to admit it’s a damn fine solution to disposing of irritating teenagers who have the answer to all and beyond, furthermore having no means of stimulation other then to boast there intelligence by posting ridiculous film reviews.
mattcam (Email address withheld) writes:
Retina - stop your babble, its a film...use your imagination a bit. I'm waiting to be blown away with your celluloid adaptation of Vlad the Impaler...gruesome.
john (Email address withheld) writes:
retina you probably enjoy anal impalment. because you dont actually shut up about in your review. battle royale is piece of art because it braeks down the the boundrys normaly seen in cinema.
P.S. why the fuck ar you so intrested in torture.
JimBob (Email address withheld) writes:
Easy there John. Freedom of speech and all that.
I think that most of what I felt whilst watching this film has already been said better by someone else on this site. But as an alienated schoolgoing youth myslf and having watched it with a load of schoolmates recently it was really interesting and disturbing to consider what you and your mates would have done in the same situation. Would you subscribe to survival of the fittest or would you not be able to live having tken a human life? Would the school hardmen collapse in the face of REAL violence? And would I kill the git who sits behind me in English and never returns the pens I lend him? All very thought provoking. Having also watched Bowling for Columbine recently I though the piece had perhaps somthing to add to the whole school massacres thing...
MurderFiend (Email address withheld) writes:
I wonder what Kiriyama was doing before deciding
"Im in the mood for shooting a few strangers...I KNOW!! I can sign myself up for a Battle Royale!!!"
Maybe he had a summer job in MacDonalds...
Nick Knowles (Email address withheld) writes:
Amazing, loved it! nuff said!
Kagami (Email address withheld) writes:
Conigute wa. Battle Royale was sick but so so kawai. Kiriyama was so unspeakably cute despite being a total psycho but that it life. Nez it was brillie x x x
miguel tipacti (encumbramientodelaperfeccion@latinmail.com) writes:
japan brings a respetable movie ,with a good screenplay & violence
MJ Blount (nope) writes:
What a fantastic piece of cinema. I thought this film was a masterpiece. Controvesial. Yes. But it was used to full potential and anyone was a good imagination will enjoy this
lexia (behindblueeyes23@hotmail.com) writes:
I have seen both BR and BRII and think they are the best films ever plus my familys gettin pretty mad at me because I am always taking about the film. I have read the novel and I am getting the manga pretty soon. Here's a random bit of trivia: did you know chiaki kuriyama (chigusa) and Kou Shubaski (mitsuko) were in afilm togther where they played 2 sisters GoGo and Yuki Yubari.
p.s. i love japanese ppl and have msn, Im not japanese but can say a few words in romanj so if anybody wants to talk on msn add me 2 ur contacts
(Email address withheld) writes:
Kou Shibasaki didnt actually take part in Kill Bill. Quentin Tarantino asked her to play Yuki but she had too many things scheduled already. its a shame though, it would have been cool
Shawn Williams (shawn_c_williams@hotmail.com) writes:
I watched it and found it sheepish. How easily they turned on each other was pathetic and VERY disturbing because in the end only one was going to survive if they followed the rules of the game anyway.
Only the computer kid (I have both 1 and 2 but I rarely watch either for completely different reasons) and his friends understood that the key was defeating the adults who had reduced their value to that of lab rats... and that's my question? Is this movie basically telling me that the Japanese can become so de-sensitized as to allow their children to become the lab rats of other Adult Japanese?
I also found the movie disturbing that not one of these childrens parents lifts a finger to save their child after they are abducted? They have become THAT detached? Law or not it is a parents responsibility to protect their children no matter what. Even if it costs them their life.
Second the sheer sheepish mentality of the students is insulting. Why, because I have some experience with this kind of situation and as teens we understood that some of us aren't going to make it but if we just "play along" when will it end? Who will be next? If they didn't get my sister this time what about the next time? Without telling my own life story we simply did what we had to do, but the message was made loud and clear "We are NOT going to sit idle while you use us as an excuse for YOUR FAILURE! We will NOT be DISCARDED like TRASH!"
I looked at this movie and when I saw the kids who actually WANTED to go to school and WANTED to participate were thrown right in with the rest of them... All I could say was what the? What was that? This is "the solution?"
It didn't exactly put a good light on Japanese society for me and although I have not read the book both the "Transfer Students" are former BR survivors. Kazuya, the one who didn't speak much, from what I recall had some sort of mental problem and that was why he could kill without remorse, but that's never explained in the movie (sorry if my specific is off, but he suffered from some sort of mental ailment). Mitsuko, if memory serves, spent her time whoring prior to being abducted for BR, thinking that this would make her "popular" or "acceptable?" I can't even remember which one it was and I had to find that out from the books because the movie certainly doesn't make me relate to her. She's just a nut-job who finally got an excuse to be able to get even for her own poor decisions.
To call her a "nut-job" or "whack-job", "psycho-chick", whatever is an insult, but that was what she was reduced to in the movie and with the books being as long as they are I guess something had to give but...
For me Battle Royale made me very angry as it reminded me of my younger years and I guess how things could have gone if we just let GROWN ADULTS push their failures on us, but also if our parents had simply left us to fend for ourselves till it was too late for all of us.
The movie did not give me a very good opinion of Japanese parenting and I was left to wonder if that was the point that the director was trying to make. According to his own accounts he was forced to work during World War II for a war he didn't exactly believe in and no one spoke up until everything was all said and done with.
It should be obvious that I am a parent now, but when I got word of this movie I was told repeatedly to see it, but when it was over I was left with more questions and worry that if this is somehow the message that their is a growing "disconnect" between the younger Japanese and the elder. I can only wonder what lies ahead for Japan as a nation.
Mad Caps (dragon__ash@hotmail.co.uk) writes:
Everyone on here is either all hailing or going at it like it was the worlds shittest movie. Well its one of my favourite movies but not my most favourite. People that are saying its shit and oooo its not good art and that wudnt happen well guess what ITS A FUCKING MOVIE its there for entertainment not to make 100% sense, nothing in the world does so why does a movie? Also the books do have more detail which is why i want to find out where the hell to buy it as i cannot find it nywhere which is beggining to piss me off. And to whoever reccomended hentai porn thats just sad i mean it really is just sad that you would reccomened something like that for people to watch, only reason i know what it is because i have a very very sick mate who likes it and showed me it. Next point, i would also like some details filled, in like a better backgroung for Kiriyama as his charater was insanly cool. In particular when he kills the kid on the bike i wana know how he started chasing himm i can just imagine him walking then seeing this wee guy on a bike and bolting to kill the wee bastard. The movie i thought was well done though i know from friends that some things have been left out from the books. The movie very well directed shows you that what you think are friends are just not sad to say i know, but it is saying that kids no jack shit about life, we think we know about what friends are and what we would do in a situation but this movie shows that not everyone is like that and that who they think they can trust they wont, i love the idea of this movie and would love to be put in a situation like that just to see what i would do and what would happen with my so called friends. Okay i don't wana die but id like to see it all played out and i would probably end up killing every single one of my mates to be honest minus like 3 of them. Thats quite sad but if you have to do it you have to do it, i dont belive as suicide as a way out so i wouldnt kill myself, and i know that some people would insantly start killing so there wouldnt be time to sort out everyone to rise against the adults and well the movie shows all of that very well. Methinks im ranting alot now lol. But i loved that the movie showed you the reactions of how people took the news and how even the best of friends supposdly (lighthouse girls)could all kill each other so easily. Its true what they say when they say us kids no fuck all, as we dont know that much about nythin, and well i loved the movie so it gets my own personal thumbs up. This movie also got me into japan alot and well i love everythin bout it should be going there soon then maybe learn the language if i can be bothered.
peace
samantha from CA (Email address withheld) writes:
i read lord of the flies during a winter vacation when i was 12 (is 27 now). Without much expectation from it, the novel shocked me to my core and till this very day, i can still remember how piggy died and all things that were once good and pure were gone.....I could not fall asleep for almost two weeks just by thinking every detail of the book.
No other book i read from then on had so much impact on me until i saw Battle Royale. Likewise, without expecting much from it, BR is insanely brilliant.
I know many criticize on how violent and stupid or fucked-up the whole idea of kids offing kids is %%@!!^$&*(?<><@$##$.
But underneath it all, i think love and trust reigns above everything. In midst of all craziness and brutality, we still want believe the good in human. I supposed that's what keeps us alive and different from animals--to believe, to trust and most of all, to love.
And I think that's what the filmaker and writer are trying to bring across. The movie is violent no doubt but the essence of it is love, trust and hope, disguised underneath all the violence and bloodbath.
I love everything about this movie and the book, and recommend everyone to see the movie or at least read the book. And simply categorizing this novel/movie under the violent flick genre would go great disservice to all mankind.
Dmer96 (Email address withheld) writes:
Battle Royale is the best movie that is ever made, the plot is unreal but it make you think, are we really heading toward that path of destruction, do we are have the courage to our friends so that we could survive, in this time we have parents blaming the media, how violent is it, and how the kids are imitating them, i have a few questions for the parents who blame the media, where the hell were you when they first watching the violent act on tv, why didnt you stop it when it is first happen in front of you, you have to set boundaries when your son or daughter cross them smack or hit them to correct them. And parent Stop putting blame on the kids, when you cant fix your own problem. Find another Scapegoat for your miserable life.
Gary (Email address withheld) writes:
Indeed i am in love with this movie.
I felt it was amazing.The death scenes of Chigusa and Mitsuko are very emotional and the classical music compliments it and heightens the experience. Not only is it a movie about gore and blood but a movie which indulges into the characters. Many of us can relate to the characters perhaps from our own classroom experiences...The love triangles and friendships and the groups which form are total genius. In my opinion one of the best movies out there :)
Add your comments about Battle Royale [About]
|
