In the future Japan, due to the deterioration of relationships between adults and teenagers, a decree is issued by the new education department, called "Battle Royale". This new law provides that every year a class of students is selected to be deported to a deserted island. There, for three days, a competition of all against all takes place, the goal of which is to remain alive until the end, when only one person will remain alive.
Cult film in its homeland (where a sequel is being prepared), it was preceded by a singular advertising campaign, as the Japanese prime minister had even tried to prevent its release in theaters, which only attracted more people to see it.
The first thing you feel when watching this movie is a notable sense of tension, effectively conveyed by the young actors. The story (based on the novel by Takami Koshun and recently adapted into a comic) is not bad in itself and keeps you engaged until the end without boring, although, despite everything, some twists may seem predictable. You could nevertheless define it as an updated version for the new millennium of "Lord of the Flies", with which it shares many themes, first and foremost the (traumatic) loss of innocence and the transition to adult life.
Another peculiar characteristic are the various metaphors that the film deals with, one of them being that of juvenile delinquency (a very felt problem in Japan) or of arrivism.
Moreover, one cannot fail to notice the level of cruelty typical of Japanese productions, which goes hand in hand with the constant underlying melodrama and some scenes of great violence. The splatter sequences are not many but are arranged strategically so as never to let the suspense drop in the viewer.
Among the actors, Takeshi Kitano stands out as the director in the role of the mad professor in charge of the competition who, perhaps ironically, is his namesake.
Of course, this film is not exempt from defects, one of them being the excessive romanticism of some scenes where characters close to death launch into love declarations or moralizing speeches.
Cynical and, underneath, funny, are the body count (which appears in overlay at each murder) and the "instructive" video that is shown to the boys before leaving them to themselves.
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