BATTLE ROYALE II (2003)

Even if this battle costs me my life,
I am not in the least bit afraid.
- Kinji Fukasaku, director

On September 2002, Kinji Fukasaku held a press conference where he made two major announcements: He was dying of bone cancer, and, refusing to let that hold him back, he was going to direct Battle Royale II.

Auditions were held during October and November, and principal shooting began on December 16, 2002, the second anniversary of the original Battle Royale's theatrical release.

Unfortunately, Kinji Fukasaku's condition deteriorated, and on December 21 he was hospitalized. The reins of the production were handed over to his son Kenta Fukasaku (who wrote the screenplay for both BR movies).

Kinji Fukasaku passed away at 1 a.m. JST on January 12, 2003. But under Kenta, the production forged ahead and the movie opened in Japanese theaters on July 5th, 2003.

	Directed by Kinji Fukasaku Kinji Fukasaku passed away on January 12, 2003 from bone cancer, in the midst of filming the sequel to Battle Royale. A filmography can be found at http://us.imdb.com/Name?Fukasaku,+Kinji
	Written and Directed by Kenta Fukasaku 30-year-old Kenta took over the reins of the production when his father fell ill. Despite directing all but one scene of the movie, he still considers BRII his father's film which he finished, and not his own first film.
Assistant Director Toru Harada Cinematographer Yuta Morokaji Producer Masumi Okada Composer Masamichi Amano

It's three years after the events of the original Battle Royale, and Shuya Nanahara is now an internationally-known terrorist determined to bring down the government. His terrorist group, Wild Seven, stages an attack that levels several buildings in Tokyo on Christmas Day, killing 8000 people.

Exactly one year afterward, the government enacts the "New Century Terrorist Counter-Measure Alternative" program, a.k.a. the BRII act, and sends the forty-two students of Shikanotoride Junior High Class 3-B to hunt Nanahara and his cohorts down in their island stronghold. Shiori Kitano, the daughter of the late headmaster of Nanahara's Battle Royale, signs up for the program, to avenge her father.

In order for the government to study the benefits of "teamwork," the new students work in pairs, with their collars electronically linked so that if one of them is killed, the other dies as well. They must kill Nanahara in three days--or die.

When will I get to see this? Where can I get BRII? (UPDATED 6/18/04)

BRII was released on region-free NTSC DVD in Korea in May 2004.

Distribution deals are in place for about 30 localities outside Japan (including the UK, Russia, Thailand, Germany, the Benelux nations, Scandinavia, South Korea, and France), which means that BRII is bound to be released in those countries somewhere down the line. Here are a set of dates past, confirmed, tentative, or estimated, pertaining to BRII's release:

Japanese DVD release: December 21, 2003
Hong Kong VCD release: January 31, 2004
Hong Kong DVD release: January 31, 2004
Korean Theatrical release: April 9, 2004
German DVD release (rental only): May 2, 2004
Japanese Special Edition Theatrical Preview: May 20, 2004
Korean DVD release: May 21, 2004
German DVD release (sale): June 2004
British DVD release: August 23 2004
Japanese Special Edition DVD release (sale): Late 2004

BRII has already had theatrical runs in Russia, Thailand, and Hong Kong, and has screened at the London Film Festival, the Sitges Film Festival in Spain, the Rotterdam International Film Festival, and the Brussells International Festival of Fantasy Films. More information on release dates can be found on the Internet Movie Database.

You can find more information about and find links to order the DVD releases at the BRII DVD page.

Did Koushun Takami write BRII ?

No. The story for the sequel was written by Kenta Fukasaku, who had adapted the original BR novel into the screenplay for the first movie. There's probably also lots of uncredited input by his late father. A novelization of the film has been released, but Takami is not involved. Takami is writing his second novel, but there's no word yet as to whether it has any connection to Battle Royale.

What's the theme song?

BRII''s equivalent of Dragon Ash's "Shizukana Hibi No Kaidan Wo" is the japanese punk group Stance Punks' "Mayonaka Shounen Totsugeki Dan." For more information about the soundtracks of both movies, click here.