Battle Royale

This is the sort of film that after about ten or twenty minutes renders you speechless, or if you can manage to speak at all you’re likely to say something akin to ‘Jesus’. Yet, if I were to describe the plot to you, aside from a little intrigued, I suspect you’d mostly feel uninterested: a class of school kids are transported to a remote island where they are forced to fight to the death until only one remains. As with any good film, though, it’s in the delivery of this plot that Battle Royale succeeds. Relatively little explanation is given. The dialogue and action are curt and brutal, matched by sweeping, epic classical music, and shots of the rough sea clashing against the rocks. We have a feeling, ultimately, of who is going to survive and who isn’t. You could see the rest of the film as a guessing game as to what order, and how brutally, the other characters are going to be killed, but this movie is much more than that. The characters and their history together is real, and sensitively portrayed. They are just kids, scared and vulnerable, clinging to each other. Their playground cliques, bullying, and crushes are replayed in extreme violence and vengeance on the island. Why this film caused such controversy, aside from the violence, could be put down to the reason why this is happening to the kids, or perhaps the very lack of reason. It is a critique on Japanese morality as much as anything else. I’m not sure I understood the role of Takeshi Kitano, unless he was supposed to be more symbolic (of the older generation) than real. Clearly the director felt his role was crucial to the resolution of the drama, but there were issues I couldn’t resolve in my head. Regardless of this, and perhaps some other minor faults, this is a fascinating, daunting film that will shock as much as move its audience.