Battle Royale

While I have nothing against Asia, extreme violence, or false psychology, presenting false emotions is inexcusable to me. The idea and the script may be original, but after 20 minutes the film turns into a pointless and unbearably drawn-out bore that cannot even rely on the amazing audiovisual design. The captivating camerawork and the musical accompaniment from the greatest classics, combined with the brutal violence, create a hypnotic synthesis. However, none of the characters grew close to my heart, and I didn't care about any of them. Instead, I found myself watching the clock, aware of the remaining duration of the film. My highly subjective feeling at the end that I had just lost two hours of time in an absolutely incomprehensible way, admittedly made me a little angry. (05/02/2006)

If I recall correctly (and can’t guarantee it), Battle Royale is only the second Asian film to get five stars from me (the first one was the Korean melodrama A Moment to Remember). During the first fifteen minutes I could only stare in disbelief at what was happening on the screen – I don’t remember any film ever shocking so much. Incredibly bizarre and insane (the explanation of the rules!), uncompromising and politically incorrect, I almost couldn’t believe what the Japanese had done. Once I got used to that, I let myself be entertained by the film and how many times it casually slips into the B-movie comedy realm. I’m not going to say it’s perfect, it isn’t, there are many places where it grids with the logic and the execution, but I’m extremely satisfied. (05/07/2009)

Battle Royale is a beautifully shocking murder flick whose absurdity you just have to laugh at (even out loud in a few places). It’s superbly filmed and edited, with locations that are reminiscent of both Bad Taste and Ring. But I'm not a fan of it. The million-dollar idea is half-baked. The initial decadent fun tries to come across as something more at the end and it only gets halfway there. *** SPOILER FOLLOWS! *** The important dramatic motif involving Takeshi Kitano’s character betraying the whole system and the rules of the game for the love of one of the players almost doesn’t work at all and the final ideas that stem from it seem overly contrived in the context of the preceding show. (11/08/2005)

Anyone out there want to give this a try in the flesh? If so, February 29, Střelecky Island, it’s a date. If you take some good speakers with you, you’ll be able to play the genius soundtrack. Kitano won't be there, but finding a charismatic bum to play the victim for a box of wine shouldn’t be a big problem. The next opportunity will be February twenty-ninth, the year of our lord 2012. I'm looking forward to it, happy hunting! (10/07/2007)

I read an excellent sci-fi story on the topic depicted in this movie about a twisted reality show where a group of inmates sentenced to death fought for survival, and the winner received not only mercy but also a decent reward. This dystopian spectacle aimed to divert the attention of the viewers from the economic crisis and societal stagnation. The main problem with Fukasaku's film is the inadequate portrayal of the background, of why society and the government had agreed on such a twisted game because, without its filming and broadcasting in the media, it somehow loses its meaning. If we accept the screenwriter's game, the director made the most out of the idea. The fight for survival within a closed community of high school students naturally offers tremendous opportunities to display a wide range of emotions, tension, and measured brutality so that the viewer remains appropriately excited throughout, and the relatively surprising ending is their reward. Everything is accentuated by a provocatively chosen musical background; you wouldn't believe the shots the director can combine with "The Blue Danube" waltz. Takeshi Kitano in the role of the tough teacher is naturally flawless in terms of acting, although his motivation, or rather the transformation from an intellectual to a cynical killer, is somewhat forced from a screenplay perspective. Overall impression: 80%. The film can rightfully be criticized for gratuitous naturalistic violence, but for the majority of its duration, the director successfully balances on the edge of bearability. (29/03/2009)