I have fond memories of watching the Battle Royale film. As a young teenager, I would watch films late at night on an old 13" Toshiba CRT, this television screen small, with a very square box to fill up the surrounding space. I would have to move around by hand an old aerial in hopes of establishing a better connection to gain access to the four television channels to choose from. I have mentioned this in the past: how one channel would often air international films, mostly Asian, late at night. I would sit on school nights and find myself indulged by these films. Curious of the world around me that seemed so different to the one I had known. With limited internet access at the time, to watch these international films was to discover that beyond the small town I lived in were lands of vast forestry, different languages, and thus different cultures and histories. It captivated me, and to this day fills me with nostalgia.
The other day I remembered Battle Royale. I realised I had not seen it since those days. I couldn't really remember much about it, other than its main premise was teenage students are forced together to fight to the death by the Japanese government. A few scenes here and there came to mind; but what was it really about? These ideas roamed through my hand, and I just couldn't help but decide to watch it again with such curiosity. Watching it this time, however, led to a very different experience now that I'm older. I couldn't help but find similarities to the film with our strange reality. So much so, that I feel the need to write these thoughts down in a post. So, this isn't even a review of the film, but I guess an admiration for the themes this film had, and how it really is a reflection, with some exaggeration, on the polluted societies we all live in to this day. One of constant challenge, sickness, and regret. Full of extremities rather than true solutions. Battle Royale is far more than a Japanese action film that spawned a genre that led to highly successful games.
If you haven't seen the Battle Royale film, there may be the odd spoiler here and there. But probably nothing major. There's a good chance you've already seen the film, too given the massive popularity of the genre in the video game world.
The Punished Youth
If there's something the whole battle royale genre of films has managed to convey, it's that they take place in a dystopian setting that sets its citizens against each other in a desperate bid for control over the broader population in one way or another. The idea in which there is an elite that pulls the strings, and a population that needs to be put into place. In modern day we often hear of the productivity issue in wester "first world" nations, the idea that people have grown lazy, lost, and hardly patriotic citizens that wish to work; we are facing uncertain times as the information era shifts the way we perceive life, void of direction. Our most basic emotions manipulated by the machines around us, essentially fighting each other for control of our attention, and thus the never-ending rush for dopamine heights. The dystopian fiction is becoming nonfiction by the year, making these 'battle royale' genre titles actually a lot more real and something to fear.
If there's a particular demographic that faces the most confusion in these times, it's the youth. Those born into this constantly changing world to which no normal is ever actually established. What "normal" is changes rapidly, as does the idea of value and spirituality. In such times, how does one influence a troubled, lost youth? As unemployment skyrockets around the world, youths reducing themselves to their bedrooms in search of comfort and safety with these devices that provide dopamine and a sense of accomplishment, what would a solution to this look like? In reality, we don't really have any solutions to this issue. There's a plethora of articles and discussion about it around the world, but nobody really has an answers as to how the youth should be inspired and healthy in a world that is the total opposite. It makes sense that such a lost society would take to even more drastic measures, instead of helping the youth, only punishes and damages them more.
In Battle Royale, the youth are thrown together on an island in which they're forced to battle to the last person standing. They are given bags of random items to help them on their quest. The government, and of course army, is in on this. The students have explosive collars attached to their necks in the event that they stray too far from the objective, killed within a few short moments. For the most part, the students don't actually want to contribute to this at all. They form alliances, stick together, and even come to plans to try to survive and save others. It's an interesting idea that shows that in reality, the youth actually have a lot of emotion and humanity to them, more than what the government and general society implies. It serves as a contrast to the adults subjecting them to death, as well as the very few fucked up students that apply to be part of this event for fun. The idea that the majority of the youth are actually innocent, good-hearted, but just lost.
There's a commentary here that shows the reality. That the youth are indeed lost, that sure they may not be the most productive and ambitious members of society; but who is at fault for that? Watching through the film, it almost made me uncomfortable to look at how society now is. To look at a film as violent and dystopian as this one, and see the very formations of its foundations within reality. What's interesting regarding this idea of Battle Royale, compared to something like The Hunger Games, is that these events within the story are not televised. It's a very private, tucked away idea. Only serving as more signs that the dystopian world these characters live within knows it's sick and won't even display this sickness to the rest. This is amplified by the ending screen, in which we see a photograph of the class together. The community they had, the friendships, the alliances that they formed in a time of struggle. Community was still very much visible and strengthened.
All of this has you realise that the escapism is justified in such society. That the way of life and the rejection of what's considered a "norm" is a safe reaction to an otherwise ill structure. To reject it all is in fact a healthy option, even if the other options are not particularly healthy themselves. I think this revisit to Battle Royale sort of awakened me to the realisation of how bad things really are. And that perhaps the youth, who are if not more lost than anyone else, are actually also some of the healthiest by pursuing a different idea of enjoyment. That the insane tech dystopia calls them sick and unproductive while telling anyone who finds themselves depressed at it all that they should take medication and accept it. Well, I have a newfound appreciation for this film as a result. And I hope it doesn't continue to become relatable as the future years come. Perhaps I'll give the film an actual review. There's much more to appreciate about it other than its themes. I definitely recommend it if you haven't seen it.
