Battle Royale

Recently I was listening to a movie commentary where the panel of commentators mentioned an old story called The Most Dangerous Game, a story about a man having found himself on an Island of horrors hunted for sport by a rich aristocrat. Having only heard of the story on occasion, I became curious as I often do and began reading about it over Wikipedia, which usually reads to additional reading and series of related articles. Which leads me to Battle Royale, a 2000 Japanese film about students forced to play a sick, demented game.

Its  only related to the Most Dangerous Game in the broadest strokes but is still an utterly fascinating story. And completely disturbing from beginning to end.

The story takes place in the not-so-distant future.  Japan’s economy has gone to shit, and society is in turmoil.  The disenfranchised youth has become unruly and unmanageable, so in response the Japanese government passes legislation that allows for a game called Battle Royale.

Here’s how it works.

Imagine you are a grade nine student.  Imagine you are taking a class trip and during that class trip you and your peers are gassed, abducted and taken to an Island.  When you get there you are told that you have been selected by impartial lottery to participate in a game called Battle Royale. You are given a survival kit that includes necessary items like a map, food, water and an object.

Imagine you are told the only way to win the game and go home is to be the last surviving member of the class, left on the Island, that each and every person sitting with you in this room must be dead. And that you are given no choice in the matter, refusal to play results in instant death via the tracking collar  currently around your neck that will explode when signaled or tampered with.

Now that object you’ve been given is part of the game.  This object is what you use to play the game and ranges from the  deadly (guns, bladed objects, crossbows etc), to defensive (body armour), to practical (Binoculars, tracker devices letting you know where everyone else is) to ridiculous (a pot lid).

Oh and you have three days to play the game. If at the end of the three days a winner is not selected, everyone dies.

And that’s just the set-up.

They jump into the horror immediately before even leaving the classroom demonstrating that everyone could die and there is nothing anyone can do about it.  Its dog eat dog, and everyone is on the menu. Some students split up into groups devising different strategies, others take off on their own.  There are the bomb makers, the bullies, the naive survivalist who believe they can make it through the game by just staying put.  This is where another wrinkle is added to the story, as various zones of the island are deemed danger zones where anyone caught there is immediately killed remotely. Throughout the film you get to know various pockets of characters all of whom are faced with terrible choices.  There is one moment in particular where a group of friends quickly turn on each other when one of them mysteriously drops dead of poisoning and end up in a horrific blood bath.  And while most characters are somewhat innocent choosing not to get involved, others immediately jump in and start killing anyone in their path. Two in particular serve as the antagonists for the film (like it needs any).  One is a girl, an outcast from the rest of the class, who revels in murdering the people who had been especially cruel to her.  In the special edition you learn her mother sold her to men when she was a young child for the sick pedo-desires. The other character that revels in the game is a mute “transfer” student, who despite not being part of the class volunteers to participate, and does his best to kill everyone he comes across.

It’s a shocking movie, not just in its violence but in the very nature of the game. The moment I began watching it I felt violated in a sense, shocked that a government could so openly force people into this tragic game.  It took me a while to get over the idea that an institution trusted with the justice of society could be so indiscriminately unjust. I almost think they enjoy it, as the movie depicts the event as one that draws great media attention a though it were the finale of Survivor. But despite my horror, I remembered my high school history lessons and realize that it’s not beyond us to do such terrible things.  The murder of others for the entertainment of a few is hardly an unheard of idea.  It’s a strangely compelling exploration of the horrors of humanity, because lets face it, we are a fucked up species, just as horrible and savage as any other, especially when it comes down to our own survival.

However, what I find most fascinating about the movie is the experience of it and the myriad of emotions I went through myself. It’s certainly not a movie for the faint of heart, and I hesitate to even call it a good movie, as I could see why some might call it morally reprehensible.  After all its stirred up incredible controversy and its easy to see why.  But in the end it’s still a fascinating experience, whether for the story or for the understanding of myself and the very visceral reactions I had to what’s portrayed.

I wish it was something I could recommend but frankly I wouldn’t want too many people seeing it.