I Saw The Greatest Movie Ever Made...

[esper]

I'm sorry to post this, but in a way, I'm not. I know that if every n00b with a modem started posting threads about their favorite movie, this would eventually become a rather lousy place to be.

That having been said, I just watched a movie that shattered me. Shattered me, for God's sake. I tremble to remember it. I'm an avid horror fan, and have watched, unflinching, THE most terrifying horror films of all time. I normally forsake the slasher movies and go with the more cerebral, deep movies that are designed to leave you with dread long after you turn off the TV. But just last night I found a movie in a dollar rack at Hasting's that I've been meaning to get for a while. I brought it home, put it in... and it ruined me. It was almost two hours long, but as soon as I finished it, I did something I've never, EVER done before... I watched it a second time through immediately. When I did, the opening scene suddenly made terrible sense to me, and it crushed me. I've seen movies about horror, but this isn't a horror movie... it's a movie about despair, and it shook me to the very fabric of my being. I've found myself getting misty-eyed at odd cinematic moments, like when Data found his cat in the wreckage of the Enterprise at the end of Generations... But I can seriously say as a non-emo adult who's very secure in his masculinity that I wept continuously throughout the entire film, both times, and today, when I tried to watch it again but found that I couldn't bring myself to. In fact, I'm having a hard time typing this as I remember it now.

I feel strange saying these things about a simple movie. Especially one that I would normally eschew ("It can't have a good, meaningful storyline! It's just a violent teen flick! What is this, some kind of cheap Red Dawn ripoff??")... But there was no way I could resist posting this about a movie that touched me so profoundly. So...

Has anyone else seen Battle Royale?

[Postmodern_Boy]

I have watched the movie and read some of the manga, still have not found time for the novel.Ã,  Its my second favorite japanese movie, after Tetsuo: The Iron Man which will probably always be my favorite because its such a freaky little cyberpunk nightmare that reminds me of a cross between cronenberg and lynch with way to much caffiene.Ã, 

[LGM]

I too have seen it. Though I wasn't effected nearly as hard as you were, I totally agree. It's a powerful film. Too bad the sequel loses all the qualities of the first film...

Anyway, I've only ever been able to watch bootleg versions of it. Netflix has the DVDs now, though, so I will be renting them shortly.

[Phemar]

Battle Royale wasn't that bad!!

Call me insensitive, but I found the film to be rather light-hearted, and even humorous in some places.

As an emotionally deep film, it's rather shallow and I've seen way better films that draw me in emotionally.

Sorry, but it was kind of just a silly film

[LGM]

I can see how you found it silly. Some of the acting is piss poor. And to some the concept is just too unbelievable to be frightening. But then again, I guess the film rings true to the Japanese culture. At least that's what I hear.

It's definitely a film that couldn't be pulled of in America.

[esper]

I can understand how it might be perceived as a bit silly. Especially the briefing video (the one time I laughed before I could barely hold my head up anymore), and the part at the end with the teacher's death scene (it was poorly executed, but still managed to be a bit creepy and, although he was an asshole, made me feel sorry even for him).... It IS supposed to poke fun at society. But it does it in the most terrible way imaginable. I can't even begin to express how i felt for each and every one of the students. The only character in the entire film I cared nothing about was Kiriyama, the insane one. Every single character had their own depth and complexity. I thought at first that Mitsuko, the girl who was running around killing everyone, was a totally one-dimensional character, but then, her dying words (I just didn't want to be a loser anymore) and I understood the entirety of her character. I felt bad for someone who had up till then been a homicidal maniac.

There were two scenes in the film that I found especially terrifying. First, the very introduction. When I watched the movie the second time, having realized exactly what that little girl with the bloodstained ragdoll had just undergone for 2 days, 7 hours, and 43 minutes... (shudder)   I wondered what she had done to win, and how it had effected / scarred her.

The second scene that is so terrifically horrible that I can't remember the scene without a tremble in my hand was the Lighthouse Massacre. It was a little over-stylized, but it was terrifying how one moment the girls are happily eating spaghetti and the next moment become so paranoid of everyone and everything around them that they brutally murder each other.

[Andail]

I actually saw this movie once, and I quite enjoyed it. The sequel on the other hand was the absolutely worst movie experience I ever had. It sort of dragged down the whole concept of Battle Royal for me.

[Vince Twelve]

Andail is right.  Absolutely under no circumstances should the second movie ever be watched by any fan of the first movie.  It will leave you with a sour taste in your mouth that will taint the first movie.

I watched Battle Royale when I first moved to Japan.  It was recommended to me by some of my students.  It does paint a very scary picture.  I liked it enough that I downloaded the entire 15 book manga and read it through.  And I would recommend it to you esper.  While the movie goes through the whole three day ordeal of the three main characters, the manga takes you through the game along side EVERY kid in the class.  All forty or so characters have backstories that are explored, and motives and feelings while playing the game.  And one by one they all get checked off the list down to the conclusion.  You really get to know the whole class by reading the manga.  It's the only manga that I've ever read more than a few pages of and I really enjoyed it.

I haven't read the original novel, but I know that the manga is quite different, developing the characters in a way that lends itself more to a long episodic graphic novel, and the film is like a condensed version of the novel.

[esper]

Well, now I'm a bit eager to get my hands on them. Does anyone have any idea where I can obtain any Battle Royale-related goods? It seems as though my copy of the movie was, indeed, bootlegged, put in a printed DVD with a printed case and sold as a used movie to Hasting's. The quality looks like it was originally intended to be 320 x 240 blown up to full-screen size, and the subtitles are burned on so I wasn't able to read everything clearly. And I would most definitely love to obtain the manga and the novel (I found the first ten chapters of the original novel translated here in case anyone's interested, but after enjoying a taste I decided I would wait until I could obtain the whole thing. This only takes them up to the scene where Shuya is bandaging Noriko's arm). I can't find them anywhere. Hasting's also had issue 7 of the manga, used and in bad condition, for five bucks, but I didn't want to torment myself with that, either.

[Phemar]

Esper: I have digital copies of the first 2 volumes of the manga if you want. I think my friend knows where to download them, I'll speak to him and see what happens

[esper]

I kiss you. 

[Blackthorne]

I think Battle Royale is seriously over-rated and praised. 

It pushes "boundries" in every possible cliched way - albiet with some artfully done sequences.  I can't deny it's effects on modern action cinema, though.


Bt

[ManicMatt]

Well... from reading your first post Esper, I had no idea you were talking about Battle Royale. As I had long forgotten all about the film a short time after watching it. That's not to say it's a bad film, just a very average one. But then it's not really the sort of film that would appeal to me. I don't like films where horrible and painful things happen to people. (Not counting things like where Jet Li snaps someone in half, thats not the sort of pain I'm talking about)

Take a scene from "House of wax". I wasn't watching it, but I came into the living room where my brother had it on. A guy had been turned into a wax model, all stiff.. but he was still alive. Unable to move, except for his eyes. Then someone peeled his face off, revealing the fleshy muscle underneath. and he couldnt scream in pain as he was all waxed up, and a tear came from his eye. Now that sort of thing really bothers me! Even though it's fake and ridiculous, the thought of someone possibly experiencing that really disturbs me!

My favourate film is the Back To The Future trilogy. So you can tell I wouldn't be into horror! 

Films are good when they leave you thinking about it long after the film ended, but not in all circumstances. I'd rather forget I saw that scene from House of wax, but when snooze-fest Sixth sense ended, that was good for making you think about everything that  happened in it. Donnie Darko just made my head explode.

[LimpingFish]

Battle Royale is a landmark in japanese film, not only because of it's subject matter, but of the seemingly artisticly healthy discussion it raised between Eirin and the film's director Kinji Fukasaku over the use and appropriateness of violence in modern japanese cinema.

For anyone who has read the original novel, where the setting of the story is a generic police state, the movie draws explicit parallels between the savagery of the island, and the percieved disillusion of Japan's youth.

When the film was given a restricted rating, it was Fukasaku himself who urged those below the age rating for the film to "Sneak into theatres to see my film. I made it for you."

It's an important film, not for its violence, but for attempts to show adults the frustration felt by the nation's youth.

But enough rambling...

I've loved asian cinema (Japanese, Korean, Hong Kong, China, etc) since I can remember, and I heartily recommend the following:

The work of Takashi Miike, particularly Audition, the Dead or Alive trilogy, MPD Psycho, and Fudoh.

Kinji Fukusaku's yakuza movies, particulary those from the Battles Without Honor and Humanity cycle,  Graveyard of Honor, and The Triple Cross.

Chan-wook Park's Vengence trilogy (Sympathy for Mr Vengence, Old Boy, Lady Vengence).

Shinya Tsukamoto's Tetsuo movies, Hiruko the Goblin, Tokyo Fist, and Bullet Ballet.

Ryuhei Kitamura's Azumi, Azumi 2, Versus, and Sky High.

Mamoru Oshii's Avalon, and Innocence (Ghost in the Shell 2).

Tsui Hark's  Peking Opera Blues, The Blade, and Zu Warriors.

Johnny To's Fulltime Killer and Heroic Trio.

Siu-Tung Ching's A Chinese Ghost Story, Wonder Seven, and New Dragon Gate Inn.

Kenji Misumi's entries in the Lone Wolf and Cub, and Zatoichi series.

Higuchinsky's, frankly astonishing, Uzamaki.

Kiyoshi Kurosawa's Kairo (Pulse).

Byung-chun Min's Natural City.

Kazuaki Kiriya's Casshern.

And, though I want too, I can't type any more.

Anything from that list will keep you (at the very least) entertained. Everything I've mentioned is available on DVD in the west and shouldn't be monsterously difficult to track down. It's also barely the tip of a fingernail on the giant hand of fantastic cinema from the east.

Most of what I've mention would be rated R, or even NC-17, in the US, and 18 in the UK.

[Blackthorne]

Audition severely disturbed me.  I wish I never watched it.

But, I suppose, I can see where people get off on freakish torture movies.  Personally, I think they're just a shade below snuff.


Bt

[LimpingFish]

Audition severely disturbed me.  I wish I never watched it.
But, I suppose, I can see where people get off on freakish torture movies.  Personally, I think they're just a shade below snuff.

Hardly a freakish torture movie. But you are entitled to you opinion, of course.



If you choose to dwell on it's, admittedly, coal black finale then you miss out on the underlying sadness of what is really a viciously painful love story.

[Postmodern_Boy]

LimpingFish, have you seen death trance? It is a really fun movie with Tak Sakaguchi and yuji shimomura from versus. Ã, Oh, and are you recommending both tetsuo movies? Ã, I still refuse to admit that there is more then one. Ã, that is how bad I think the second one was. Ã, great list though, it reads a lot like one of the shelves of my video collection.

[Blackthorne]

If you choose to dwell on it's, admittedly, coal black finale then you miss out on the underlying sadness of what is really a viciously painful love story.

I've heard this "defence" a MILLION times, and it's crap.  Viciously painful love story?  Just because some chicks taprooted in the skull doesn't give her the right to do what she does.  That ain't love, or lack of it - that's a f'd human being.

The movie is intended to make you cringe, not go - aw, poor breaking heart.


Bt

[ManicMatt]

It could have been better. It dragged on, and the ending felt like an anti-climax, if I remember correctly.

Had some nice ideas, but I was disapointed overall. The box artwork looked like it would rock!

[LimpingFish]

BT: Of course it's to make you cringe. How else could you react?

Spoiler

Shigeharu is so blinded by his vision of the perfect woman that his mind blanks out all the warning signs. When key scenes are replayed at the end of the movie, we see the girl confessing things about her past. When these scenes are first shown to us, they have obviously been tainted by Shigeharu's subconcious need to perserve what he thinks he has found. True love. Even with needles in his eyelids and his feet hacked off, Asami, her neck obviously broken, is still promising him undying love. A literal scene of Shigeharu's delusion. That's what makes his story so sad.

[close]

When we confess our love for someone, and they reject us, we experience a special kind of pain. Miike takes that point and revs it to a level where the audience experiences a parallel discomfort. I goes beyond being a simple movie, and forces you to either watch or leave the theatre. Which a lot of people did.

Postmodern Boy: Alas, Death Trance has yet to reach me. But by god I'm looking foward to it.

As for Tetsuo II, I'll agree that it lacks the kinetic energy of the first, but, seeing as it came to be made simply out of Tsukamoto's horror at what Hollywood-based studios offered him, it still has it's moments. A Snake of June is what true misguided Tsukamoto looks like.

Matt: Casshern is overlong, but some of it's visuals are so striking it deserves to be seen by a wider audience. So I still recommend it.