Battle Royale

Original title: Batoru rowaiaru

IMDb RATING

7.5/10

197K

YOUR RATING

POPULARITY

3,053

In the future, the Japanese government captures a class of ninth-grade students and forces them to kill each other under the revolutionary "Battle Royale" act.

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Action Adventure Drama Thriller

In the future, the Japanese government captures a class of ninth-grade students and forces them to kill one another under the revolutionary "Battle Royale" act.In the future, the Japanese government captures a class of ninth-grade students and forces them to kill one another under the revolutionary "Battle Royale" act.In the future, the Japanese government captures a class of ninth-grade students and forces them to kill one another under the revolutionary "Battle Royale" act.

Director
- Kinji Fukasaku
Writers
- Koushun Takami
- Kenta Fukasaku
Stars

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

7.5/10

197K

YOUR RATING

POPULARITY

3,053

Director
- Kinji Fukasaku
Writers
- Koushun Takami
- Kenta Fukasaku
Stars

See production info at IMDbPro

Awards
- 7 wins & 8 nominations

Trivia
Many members of the Japanese Parliament tried to get the novel banned, but to no avail. When the film was released, they attempted to ban it also. Both efforts resulted in the novel and film becoming even more successful as people bought the book and went to the movie to see what the fuss was all about.

Goofs
Given that the events in the beginning of the film shows the winning student from previous year with rather intense media coverage, the students in the competition depicted in the film should have been aware of the existence of the competition and what was at stake before it was explained to them.

Quotes
[Shougo has just finished bandaging Noriko's leg]
Shuya: You know a lot about medicine.
Shougo Kawada: Well, my father was a doctor.
[a few minutes later, Shougo serves Noriko and Shuya food]
Noriko Nakagawa: Wow! This is pretty good!
Shougo Kawada: It should be. My father was a chef.
[later, After escaping the island]
Shuya: You even know how to drive a boat?
Shougo Kawada: Hey, my father was a fisherman.

Crazy credits
As the credits roll, a class picture is displayed, showing all of the students that have been killed in the Battle Royale, including the two transfer students.

Alternate versions
The Special Version includes the following:
Redone opening titles
Redone sound effects
Added CGI blood to make the shootouts more graphic Also, many shots were added, deleted, reedited, and extended for pacing and clarity purposes, including the following:
A longer basketball sequence
Added reaction shots of the kids in the classroom to Kitano's "Do you know this law" question, and after Kuninobu's death.
A flashback shot of Mizuho and Inada and Kaori Minami to remind us of who they were when we see their bodies.
Closer shots of Takiguchi and Hatagami's corpses
An additional shot of Nanahara weeping at the top of the lighthouse
Additional shots of postcards from Mimura's uncle
Kitano shutting down power to the computers and ordering the soldiers to reboot after the Third Man attack
A scene with Mitsuko as a 9-year-old coming home to find a pedophile in her house.
An additional shot of Mimura triggering the explosives on the truck
Requiems that show the real flashbacks, and we hear the dialog during Noriko's dream.

Connections
Featured in Japanorama: Episode #1.2 (2002)

Soundtracks
Shizuka na hibi no kaidan wo
(Stairway of Quiet Everyday Life)
Performed by Dragon Ash
Courtesy of Victor Entertainment, Inc.

User reviews734

Review

Featured review

9/10

Quite brilliant

There have been contrasting cries of "greatest film ever made" and "pointless gore fest" made about BR, and neither are accurate in my opinion. What it is, is a commentary about "perceived" (real or otherwise) problems among Japanese teens in the late 90's.

In one review, someone basically likened it to a movie involving young Japanese girls running around in school uniforms acting violent....DUH, thats the whole point. A lot of peoples only knowledge of Japan is Manga and Hentai.

If people bothered to watch the news once in awhile, they may know that the establishment in Japan were VERY worried about young people getting out of control, and BR portrays all this perfectly.

Its NOT ultra violent, although the fact that they are supposed to be teens makes it disturbing. Battle Royale is no worse than Lord of the flies, but for some reason that has been deified as a work of art, and BR is classed as trash. I'd say its more about cultural snobbery than actual appreciation of a truly magnificent film.