Continuity mistake: When Kawada takes the picture with Keiko on it out of his wallet, you can see the picture from behind, because the light is on it. Then, when it is handed to Noriko, the picture is a completely different one. (00:54:20)
Battle Royale (2000)
Plot summary
Directed by: Kinji Fukasaku
Starring: Tatsuya Fujiwara, Takeshi Kitano, Aki Maeda, Taro Yamamoto
Battle Royale is based on a book by Koushun Takami. In the near-future Japan, the nation collapsed, with 15% Unemployment, 10 million people are out of work, and 800,000 students boycotting school. The adults lost confidence and fearing the youth, passed a new law. The Millenium Educational Reform Act, also known as the BR Act.
The BR Act sends one class, chosen by impartial lottery, to a deserted island, provides them with weapons and tells them to kill all their classmates. The last one alive can go home. To make sure the rules are kept to and that students don't linger in one area too long, each student is wearing a collar, which monitors their pulse, sends information back to the HQ of their position, and if necessary, exploads killing who ever is wearing it. Each hour a new area of the island is deemed a Danger Zone, whoever is in there has their collars expload. If no one dies within a 24 hour period, all collars expload.
This years Battle Royale features the class 3B from Shiroiwa Junior High, with one student who stabbed their teacher a year before. This teacher is now the head of the Battle Royale. The story focusses around how all of the students cope, with Shuya, Noriko and Shogo trying to survive, Kazuo who signed up for fun, Shinji trying to escape and Hiroki looking for his best friend and the girl he loves.
More mistakes in Battle Royale
Teacher Kitano: So today's lesson is, you kill each other off till there's only one left. Nothing's against the rules.
More trivia for Battle Royale
Question: In the original novel, it was Shogo (not Shuya) who hacked the system to discover how to disable the collars; at the same time he found out that the class would be doing the Battle Royale and transferred into that class to try and use his knowledge to mess it up. In the film, the person who found out how to disable the collars and the person who found out about the Battle Royale and transferred into it are different people. Does anyone know why this change was made?
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Chosen answer: Kawada hacked the system, learned about the collars, and transferred voluntarily to the class he knew would be participtaing in both versions. The only difference is when he transferred: in the book, it was right after his win, and in the film it was just for the battle. Shuya never hacked anything in either the book or the film. As to why the change was made, I can only assume that, given the shortening of novels involved in film making, it's easier to make Kawada a complete stranger than a loner that the kids recognize.