By far the most controversial film of 2000, this is an outrageous and ultra-violent satire from Japan. It’s no masterpiece, but it is endlessly thought provoking and uncompromising, rare commodities in today’s increasingly homogenized film world.
The Package
Kinji Fukasaku is one of Japan’s oldest and most
respected filmmakers, having directed successful (financially if
not always artistically) films like THE GREEN SLIME, BLACK
LIZARD and MESSAGE FROM SPACE—but look further down his resume
and you’ll find bizarre and grotesque films like GRAVEYARD OF
HONOR AND HUMANITY, an unrelenting look at the life of a
psychotic gangster. BATTLE ROYALE, his latest film, is fully in
keeping with that latter tradition, being the story of a future
world where children are encouraged to kill each other.
It’s no surprise that this film has become so
controversial in the months since its December, 2000 premiere in
Japan. Japanese authorities denounced it en masse, which
doubtless only helped it to become the highest-grossing film of
that year. Unfortunately—and unsurprisingly—there is no U.S.
release on the horizon.
The Story
Set sometime in the future, this film concerns the
ultimate form of ritualized combat: the “Battle Royale,” an
all-out war fought entirely by 15-year olds kidnapped form their
schools and set free on a small island. With all the pubescent
violence of recent years, adults have apparently become so
terrified of their children that the BR is the only solution–in
other words, all references to real events are strictly
intentional!
To insure the kids do their duty and kill each other,
they’re given explosive necklaces by a sadistic
headmaster–played by Japanese superstar Takeshi Kitano, whose
character happens to be named…Kitano!—that are set to explode
three days from their inception…the exact amount of time
allotted to the Battle Royale. The kids, who are each given a
different weapon upon setting foot on the island, succumb to the
pressure and carry out their gruesome assignment, thus
demonstrating this film’s ultra-nihilistic worldview. From
there, it’s an unrelenting gorefest as tykes are shot, stabbed,
beaten, garroted and so forth, with an onscreen countdown
recording how many of them are left alive after each killing.
The Direction
Although his film starts out with all the satirical
force of NATURAL BORN KILLERS or NETWORK, Fukasaku’s direction
is far too melodramatic and artificial overall. The battle
scenes all seem to be shot with an eye for spilled blood,
meaning this film will certainly please gorehounds but that few
others need apply. This isn’t to say that it isn’t worth seeing,
just keep your expectations low.
Vital Statistics
BATTLE ROYALE
Battle Royale Production Committee
Director:
Kinji Fukasaku
Producers: Akio
Kamatani, Tetsu Kayama, Masumi Okada, Masao Sato
Screenwriter: Kenta
Fukasaku
Cinematographer:
Masamichi Amano
Editor: Hirohide Abe
Cast: Tatsuya
Fujiwara, Aki Maeda, Taro Yamamoto, Masanobu Ando, Lou Shibasaki,
Takeshi Kitano