We enter the film with the narrator explaining that this is an unsettling time in Japan. The youth is out of control and the government doesn't know what to do about it, so to combat these crazy, moral-less adolescents, the BR act in introduced. The BR (battle royale) Act is a nation-wide lottery where all grade nine classes are automatically entered. If a class is selected, that class is transported to a deserted island where, in the span of at the most, three days, one student must kill all of their classmates and be the last one standing to 'win' or deadly necklaces they are forced to wear will explode, killing everyone. The students are each given a bag of provisions to last them three days as well as a mystery weapon, the weapon can either be good, or very ineffective.
The main characters are named Shuya Nanahara and Noriko Nakagawa, but several of the students play significant roles in the film and I believe that if you read the novel (from whence the film came) there is technically no 'main character' as anyone could die at any time. As an example of some not so good weapons, these two get a pot lid and binoculars for weapons, while others get guns and swords and the like. We are introduced to several of the students and their relationships with each other. For the students we do get to know a bit, we also get a bit of a back story on them as well, explaining certain relationships or characteristics. There are also two transfer students who are wild cards, and throw everyone off a bit. We get to see several different strategies on how different characters react to the situation. Some kill themselves, refusing to play all together, some try to fight the system, others try to gang up (though this would probably prove to be problematic if they did indeed kill everyone else), you of course have the crazy ones out to kill as many people as they can, and there are those just trying to survive till then end without killing or being killed.
What I like about this film, besides the lord-of-the-flies-esque gore, is that this movie is actually just like any other teen, high school drama. We get to hear about romances, jealousies, clique wars, etc., but instead of it ending peaceably with a sugar-coated happy ending, they kill each other. One of my favourite scenes is where a group of 'best friend' girls are in this lighthouse together, and after one of them sneakily tried to kill Nanahara with her weapon, who they have injured upstairs, she accidentally kills one of her buddies. They of course all break out in a shrieking, adolescent, immature argument, blaming and accusing each other for what happened. Under any other circumstance this kind of scene would annoy me so much... but then they all kill each other and die. It's so good.
There is a bit of gore in this and there is a disclaimer at the beginning stating that upon its release, children under 14 years of age were prohibited from watching it... but it was made in 2000 and I feel that our media has progressed enough technologically for this to not be as disturbing as it might have once been.
This is such an epic film that I recommend it to everyone. There really is something for everyone, and everyone over a certain age is sure to get some sort of enjoyment from watching it. It's like Lord of the Flies meets Kill Bill meets Sixteen Candles... in Japanese. On the DVD (it was just legally released for the first time in North America recently) it says this one of Quentin Tarantino's favourite films, which gives you kind of an idea... but it really doesn't need the recommendation. If you have not already seen this, you should go watch it. Now.
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