Battle Royale

I'm always interested by what movies reviewers reference for their pull quotes. Case in point the main pull quote for The Belko Experiment, the latest film penned by Guardians of the Galaxy director/scribe James Gunn, has been sold as "Office Space meets Battle Royale." While the first of those two films has a dedicated cult following in the U.S., Japan's Battle Royale is arguably more obscure and less ubiquitous. And since cinema buffs have already compared the film to The Hunger Games, I thought it was high time I reviewed the violent dystopian movie myself.

The movie opens with some troubled school Japanese school children dealing with grief, suicidal depression, and violent outbursts. When one such outburst injures a teacher, the class, known as 3-B, is chosen for the following year's Battle Royale, a fight to the death between the entire class and some unknown outliers that must be completed in three days. Armed with a random weapon and limited supplies, the students begin a furious fight to survive and possibly get the best of the game's overlords.

So if the, school-aged children forced to fight to the death premise feels very Hunger Games-esque you're not too far off, however there are a number of stylistic and story choices that make this movie a different animal.

The Violence is Bloody and R-Rated

While there was certainly outrage towards The Hunger Games the violence on screen was fairly tame. There was some blood, but nothing you could truly describe as gory. As some cinephiles familiar with Japanese cinema might expect, that's vastly different here. The violence here is nasty full of face offs with firearms, blades, and even explosive devices, and there's squibs and plenty of blood-letting. While you can argue about whether or not this style is necessary or appropriate, the intended effect is quite obvious: make everything look as horrendous and terrifying as possible.

The Characters Are A Wider Spectrum

While the true villain in both The Hunger Games and Battle Royale is the establishment or government, Battle Royale has more clearly-defined bad guy contestants with no redeeming qualities. Since Hunger Games main thematic thrust was class-based, the villainous contestants are older athletic teens from richer districts with years of skills training to their advantage. You're not sad when they die per say, but even the lead antagonist has a change of heart before his demise about the futility of the Games themselves. In Battle Royale, the larger class-size and shorter introduction means that we've got a larger spectrum of contestants with differing goals that encompass the varied teenage experience. Some of the class opts for suicide instead to go out on their own terms, others split into factions including a lighthouse full of girls, a tech savy group looking to break the game, our di-facto heroic squad, and the big new addition: sociopaths.

While you could argue the sociopaths are there to both pick off weaker members of the class and give us the set up for a final showdown, I think their inclusion adds to the film's themes about the adults attitudes towards the teens. Because one of them behaved violently, the entire class is now being punished...by being force to inflict violence on one another...but because they may not be inclined to do it they ensure that amoral monsters are there to thin the herd.

It's All About Teenagers vs. Adults

As I indicated before, The Hunger Games main theme is economic class. The working class districts in particular are forced to participate in the games as a punishment for rebellion that's enforced by the rule of aristocrats. Battle Royale is clearly about adolescence and clashes with the adult world. The reason this class is chosen is a personal slight by their former teacher, and he seems to take great delight in running the game and watching his students, many of whom are emotionally troubled, perish.

Battle Royale also lacks The Hunger Games broadcast system which means that the outrage and push back from the class is more personal and localized. They've been singled out and abandoned.

As such, the fight against the system is more directly aimed at the adults and the teacher in charge. The majority of the scenes are filled with teenage specific scenes i.e. can you really trust your friends at this age or what would take to make a room full of teenagers with weapons begin killing each other. The entire movie plays out like a violent reflection on the highs and lows of teenage life and the system that wants them dead.

End Result: Ultraviolent Angst

While the premise behind Battle Royale is in line with The Hunger Games, Royale is more startling, violent, and angry tale about youth and misunderstanding. And it still packs a wallop. Check this one out.