Battle Royale

A closer look at the story

In a near-future Japan where adults have come to fear the young, the government enforces a notorious piece of legislation known as the Battle Royale act. Each year one school class is taken to a deserted island, handed weapons and supplies, and told that only one of them will be allowed to leave. This time the chosen class includes Shuya Nanahara and Noriko Nakagawa, and within days friendship, trust and conscience are all put under extreme strain. Directed by Kinji Fukasaku from Kenta Fukasaku's adaptation of the novel by Koushun Takami, the 2000 film stars Tatsuya Fujiwara, Aki Maeda and Takeshi Kitano in a dark thriller whose graphic violence is aimed at adult viewers.