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Battle Royale – Arrow Video (4k UHD)

Theatrical Release Date: Japan, 2000
Director: Kinji Fukasaku
Writers: Koushun Takami, Kenta Fukasaku
Cast: Tatsuya Fujiwara, Aki Maeda, Tarô Yamamoto, Chiaki Kuriyama, Takashi Tsukamoto, Sôsuke Takaoka, Ko Shibasaki, Masanobu Andô, Takeshi Kitano

Release Date: November 22nd, 2021
Approximate Running Times: 113 Minutes 55 Seconds (Original Theatrical Version), 122 Minutes 1 Second (Special Edition Director’s Cut)
Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1 Widescreen / 2160 Progressive / HEVC / H.265 / Dolby Vision HDR10 (Both Versions)
Rating: 18 (UK)
Sound: DTS-HD 5.1 Japanese, DTS-HD Stereo Japanese (Both Versions)
Subtitles: English (Both Versions)
Region Coding: Region Free
Retail Price: £29.99 (UK)

"Presenting an alternate dystopian vision of turn-of-the-millennium Japan, Battle Royale follows the 42 junior high school students selected to take part in the government’s annual Battle Royale programme, established as an extreme method of addressing concerns about juvenile delinquency. Dispatched to a remote island, they are each given individual weapons (ranging from Uzis and machetes to pan lids and binoculars), food and water, and the order to go out and kill each other. Every player is fitted with an explosive collar around their neck, imposing a strict three-day time limit on the deadly games in which there can only be one survivor. Overseeing the carnage is ‘Beat’ Takeshi Kitano (Sonatine, Hana-bi, Zatoichi) as the teacher pushed to the edge by his unruly charges." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 5/5 (Original Theatrical Version, Special Edition Director’s Cut)

Here’s the information provided about the transfers, "The original 35mm camera negative of the theatrical version and a 35mm dupe negative of the director’s cut version were scanned in 4K resolution at Toei Company LTD.

The film was restored and graded in 4K SDR and HDR10/Dolby Vision at Silver Salt Restoration, London.

4K restoration of the original theatrical version and special edition director’s cut of Battle Royale from the original camera negative by Arrow Films, approved by Kenta Fukasaku."

Battle Royale original theatrical version comes on a 100 GB triple layer 4K UHD

Disc Size: 86.1 GB

Feature: 74.2 GB

Battle Royale special edition director’s cut comes on a 100 GB triple layer 4K UHD

Disc Size: 89.6 GB

Feature: 79.5 GB

Unlike their Blu-ray from 2010, which transfers dated sources, this new release from Arrow Video is sourced from a brand new 4K restoration that is vastly superior to the transfers used for Arrow Video’s 2010 Blu-ray. Areas of greatest improvement are image clarity, contrast, and black levels. Also, compression is solid, and the image retains a filmic look.

Audio: 5/5 (DTS-HD 5.1 Japanese), 4.75/5 (DTS-HD Stereo Japanese)

Both versions come with two audio options; a DTS-HD 5.1 mix in Japanese and a DTS-HD stereo mix in Japanese. Both audio mixes sound great. Dialog comes through clearly, and everything sounds balanced and robust when it should. That said, the DTS-HD 5.1 mix sounds noticeably fuller than the DTS-HD stereo mix. Both versions come with removable English subtitles.

Extras:

Extras on the disc with the theatrical cut include an archival documentary titled The Making of Battle Royale: The Experience of 42 High School Students (50 minutes 26 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with removable English subtitles), an archival featurette titled The Slaughter of 42 High School Students (10 minutes 11 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with removable English subtitles), an archival featurette titled Behind The Scenes (12 minutes 12 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with removable English subtitles), an archival featurette titled Filming on Set (11 minutes 3 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with removable English subtitles), an archival featurette titled Conducting Battle Royale with the Warsaw National Philharmonic (7 minutes 9 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo with Japanese text and removable English subtitles), an interview with Kenta Fukasaku Bloody Education (34 minutes 59 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with removable English subtitles), a documentary about the legacy of Battle Royale titled Coming of Age: Battle Royale at 20 (42 minutes 25 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with removable English subtitles), and an audio commentary with film critics Tom Mes and Jasper Sharp.

Extras on the disc with the special edition director’s cut include the original theatrical trailer (1 minute 50 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with removable English subtitles), TV ad #1 (34 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with removable English subtitles), TV ad #2 (20 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with removable English subtitles), promo#1 (16 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with removable English subtitles), promo#2 (38 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with removable English subtitles), special edition theatrical trailer (52 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with removable English subtitles), special edition TV ad (32 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with removable English subtitles), special edition TV spot: Tarantino Version (32 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with removable English subtitles), Kinji Fukasaku trailer reel (29 minutes 41 seconds, Dolby Digital mono Japanese with removable English subtitles), an instructional video explaining the rules of the game titled The Correct Way to Fight in Battle Royale (2 minutes 37 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with removable English subtitles), a new version of the original instructional video made to celebrate Kinji Fukasaku’s birthday titled The Correct Way to Make Battle Royale: Birthday Version (3 minutes 5 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with removable English subtitles), Premiere Press Conference (12 minutes 5 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with removable English subtitles), Tokyo International Film Festival Presentation (4 minutes 29 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with removable English subtitles), Opening Day at the Marunouchi Toei Movie Theater (14 minutes 28 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with removable English subtitles), on-location archival featurette with footage of the cast and crew reuniting for the shoot of the Special Edition (8 minutes 40 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with removable English subtitles), an archival interview with actor Takeshi Kitano (11 minutes 52 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with removable English subtitles), an archival featurette titled Royale Rehearsals (7 minutes 14 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with removable English subtitles), and an archival featurette titled Masamichi Amano Conducts Battle Royale (9 minutes 48 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Japanese with removable English subtitles).

Other extras include reversible cover art, a hard case slipbox, and a 36-page booklet with cast & crew information, an essay titled Classroom Chaos: The Millennial Pull of Battle Royale written by Matt Alt, an essay titled The Doom Generation written by Anne Billson, Director’s Statement and information about the restoration.

Summary:

Kinji Fukasaku had a film career that spanned five decades and a filmography that is as diverse and as accomplished as any director past or present. Kinji Fukasaku would achieve his greatest international success with the controversial film Battle Royale. From the moment of its arrival, Battle Royale has been a film that has divided its audience. There is no middle ground. Either you love this film or you hate this film. And while some of this can be attributed to the film’s subject matter, which was adapted from Koushun Takami’s novel, also titled Battle Royale, a lot of the credit as to why the film resonates with its audience goes to its director, Kinji Fukasaku, who puts the focus on the characters and their emotions.

Content wise Battle Royale treads familiar ground that has been covered in other films like The Most Dangerous Game and Lord of the Flies. Fortunately, the end result is far enough removed from any of these aforementioned films that any similarities quickly become a moot point. There are many themes at play in Battle Royale, with some of the more prominent ones being youth vs. adults, poor vs. rich, and outcasts vs. popular kids. And while there are a few participants who try to work together, as the game progresses, tensions grow and allies become enemies. Also, to shake things up, two delinquent transfer students are thrown into the mix.

When discussing Battle Royale, the one area that often draws the most criticism is its graphic depiction of violence. Sure, the killings are graphic and often verge into nihilism. What did they expect? After all, this is a story about 42 students participating in a game of death. Without giving too much of the narrative away, let’s just say that the bloodiest moment is the result of a misunderstanding and not at the hands of one of the more sadistic participants that are only out for blood.

From a production standpoint, there is not a single area where Battle Royale is lacking. The direction, the pacing, and the score (which is mostly made up of classical music) are all pitch-perfect. The most powerful combination of visual and musical elements is a bloody shootout in a warehouse. The ensuing carnage is Johann Sebastian Bach’s’ Air 'from Suite No. 3 in D Major, BWV 1068. Another area where this film excels is its cast, which includes many actors in their very first roles. Some of the more notable cast members include Takeshi Kitano (Sonatine), Tatsuya Fujiwara (Death Note), Aki Maeda (Linda, Linda, Linda), Chiaki Kuriyama (Kill Bill Volume 1), and Masanobu Ando (Sukiyaki Western Django). Ultimately, Battle Royale is a provocative film about the darker sides of human nature. That, over the years, has not lost any of its power and relevance.

Arrow Video revisits Battle Royale, giving it a solid 4K UHD upgrade that takes full advantage of the format, highly recommended.

Note about the 4K screenshots: It is not possible to make Dolby Vision or HDR10 screenshots that faithfully match the experience of watching a film in motion on a TV. Instead of not having any screenshots, all of the 4K screenshots are m2ts taken with a VLC player and lossless PNGs.

Original Theatrical Version Screenshots.