Battle Royale

As high concepts go, Battle Royale hits the sweet spot: It’s Lord Of The Flies meets The Most Dangerous Game meets perhaps the cruelest year of teenage life, which would have a Darwinian quality even without the aid of axes and semi-automatics. Add to that ultra-violence, Japanese schoolgirls, and Takeshi Kitano, and you have an instant cult classic. In a near-future police state, the nonsensical, supposedly teen-rebellion-quashing “Battle Royale Act” maroons a random class on a desert island every year and forces the kids to slaughter each other until one person remains. Battle Royale is many things at once: A grand metaphor for the cruel cliques and hierarchies that govern teenage life; a statement about the chasm between the older and younger generations; a rebellious salvo against fascism and government control; and a stinging, no-holds-barred action film that’s like manga come to life. 

Updated 10/12/2011