On Blu-ray: Death Note

The hugely popular Death Note films are now available on Blu-ray. Angela Burton takes a look at a world of death gods and notebooks that can kill in Death Note and Death Note: The Last Name.

Death Note began life as a manga series created by writer Tsugumi Ohba and manga artist Takeshi Obata in 2003. It ran for 108 chapters in the Japanese manga magazine Weekly Shōnen Jump. The series was also published in tankōbon format (an independent book) for 12 volumes released in Japan, and was later translated into English. It was then adapted into two live-action films (with a spin off L: Change the World) and an anime series composed of 37 episodes. A novel written by Nisio Isin based on the series has also been released in Japan, as well as various video games. In April 2009 it was announced that Warner Bros acquired the rights for the Death Note manga to be adapted into a live-action, English language movie in the US.

Light Yagami (Tatsuya Fujiwara) is a bright student, following in his father’s footsteps towards a career in the police force. But when he finds criminals aren’t always successfully punished for their misdeeds and a Death Note mysteriously lands in his path, he decides to take matters into his own hands, ridding the world of the criminals who can’t be caught by other means.

A Death Note is a notebook, dropped from the heavens. Any person whose name is written inside it will die. Unless otherwise stated, the named person will die of a heart attack 40 seconds after their name is inscribed. When criminals begin to die of seemingly natural causes, the police are baffled but suspicious, dubbing the mysterious killer “Kira” (the Japanese pronunciation of the English word “killer”). Having no leads, they bring in the famous, unconventional detective known as L (Ken'ichi Matsuyama).

L begins piecing together the clues, first figuring out that Kira can murder without touching his victim, and then that he must have connections to the police force. As his net closes in on Light, the young man is forced to kill other people who might lead L closer to him and begins a transformation from a law-abiding good guy to a conniving, devious near-fugitive. The battle of wits between Light and L is truly absorbing and the narrative’s twists and turns mean that the 126-minute running time doesn’t drag at all.

The owner of the Death Note is a rogue Shinigami (death god) who goes by the name of Ryuk. The boss-eyed, joker-mouthed, black and white god looked great when compared to his graphic novel/anime counterpart but animated in CG and placed next to a live-action cast? Sadly, not so great. Not only does the CG fail to blend with the surroundings, Light’s interactions with the poorly-realised god made it difficult to sympathise with the seriousness of his situation.

After sitting through his overly dramatic performance in Kaiji: The Ultimate Gambler, this reviewer was pleased to see Tatsuya Fujiwara play Light with a simple – and most importantly believable – grace. In fact, the only over-acting came from Erika Toda’s Misa Amane, whose cutesy pop star character more than invited it.

Something of an institution in Japan; whether you’re already a fan or a newbie to Death Note, this is an adaptation worth your time.

Rating on a scale of 5 names in a note book: 3.5

Release date: On Blu-ray: September 20
Directed by: Shusuke Kaneko
Written by: Tsugumi Ôba, Takeshi Obata, Tetsuya Ôishi
Cast: Tatsuya Fujiwara, Ken'ichi Matsuyama, Asaka Seto, Erika Toda, Shunji Fujimura, Takeshi Kaga, Yu Kashii
Rating: 12
Running time: 126 minutes

Death Note: The Last Name

Carrying on directly from where the first feature ended, Death Note: The Last Name sees another notebook falling to earth. Managing to escape suspicion temporarily, Light joins the search for the mysterious Kira, all the while looking for ways to cover his tracks. In reality he has joined forces with the owner of the second Death Note, pop star Misa Amane (Erika Toda). Dubbing herself “Kira 2”, Misa agrees to swap half her life for the “Eyes of Death”, which confer the ability to know any person’s name. Of course, this means she can then enter their name in her book and kill them instantly. Will she manage to find L’s true name before he discovers the identities of the two “Kiras”?

Knowing he will lose his memory of any involvement with the Death Note if gives up the powerful notebook (only until he touches it again), Light uses this as part of a plan to convince L of his innocence. Thus for the central section of the film, Light reverts to his innocent self and takes L’s place as the most brilliant young detective on the search. And it’s a bit of a drag. What made the original Death Note so compelling was the cat and mouse game between Light and L. Removing that element from the majority of the second installment and focusing on Light’s memory loss makes the sequel considerably less effective.

With the introduction of a new Death Note is a new Shinigami: Rem. Another light and dark comparison, Rem is as white as Ryuk is black – but equally ineffective in terms of the CG/live-action mix.

Not only is the central section disappointing but the ending feels unnecessarily prolonged. At 141 minutes and with the best part of the plot over by the half-way mark, it’s a sequel that only established fans will enjoy.

Rating on a scale of 5 secret Kiras: 2

Release date: On Blu-ray: September 20
Directed by: Shusuke Kaneko
Written by: Tsugumi Ôba, Takeshi Obata, Tetsuya Ôishi
Cast: Tatsuya Fujiwara, Ken'ichi Matsuyama, Asaka Seto, Erika Toda, Shunji Fujimura, Takeshi Kaga, Yu Kashii
Rating: 12A
Running time: 141 minutes