Battle Royale

Awesome, brutal, and even heartbreaking. There are some other movies in this vein, but not a single one ever manages the same heights to my knowledge. I've had a lot of experience with Battle Royale, between reading the novel, the manga, and watching this film numerous times. They're all interesting, but I think this one is really special. It never gets old! Something funny about calling this teacher Kitano, I think. If only I could put my finger on it... There are enough really solid performances to sell basically every single thing this movie does. You really don't get a hit rate like this often, especially given the sheer number of characters whose stories they refused to throw out. But there's never a time when this movie feels insincere, nor do I ever feel like this movie is shortchanging me. The biggest stretch comes when Nanahara is helped by a large group of girls and within minutes of his waking up, the group violently implodes in a fit of paranoia and they all kill each other. But, although there's a bit of overacting on Nanahara's part just after the whole thing happens, as there is throughout the movie, it doesn't ruin the sequence or anything like that. Oh yeah, there's also sort of a ton of incredible comic moments throughout. The final feature film directed by Kinji Fukasaku, and...well, it's pretty god-damned good. "Go, Shuya! You can do it, Shuya!" alt. quote: "In this moment, what should an adult say to a kid?"