After extreme efforts to discover the identity of this Kira (Lightsnickname) the police are forced to bring in special forces, the FBI andultimately “L”. L, is a brilliant undercover investigator, he is also ateenager that confounds the police and looks at this to be a game. Inthe end the battle is between “L” and Kira, as they battle to the deathfor justice returned to Japan and ultimately the world.
PRESENTATION Ryuk is the god of the underworld who has “dropped” his death note in the human world. He follows Light around and is interested in how he will use the book. He is referred to as a shinigami, or god of death. He loves apples and is completely C.G.I. Though I felt the graphics could use some serious improvement, he does look like the Ryuk form the anime. The trouble with this is that when he is placed in the movie, though he’s supposed to be a character from another world he looks cheaply made rather than achieving that other worldly effect. As for other parts of the movie there were subtle things that were nice like the note book staying dry in the thunderstorm.
EXTRAS
Interviews- are not really interviews but include small clips of how the movie was made such as voice acting, subway shooting, special effects and more.
Trailer- The original Japanese movie trailer with Red Hot chili peppers in the background. The only draw back to this is there are no subtitles, but you can still get the gist of what’s going on.
Death Note Manga Volume 1- This is the perfect inclusion of materials, it gives the audience a chance to see the manga behind the film.
OVERALL
The movie is forced to be concise where as the anime is not, so there are things that the movie lacks in plot development, but overall the pacing was done well. I really enjoyed the live action for a few reason, the number one reason is L’s performance, he did a perfect job making that character come to life. His little gestures and overall acting was impressive. Light and Ryuk however were better represented by the anime. If your following along with the manga then you know that Light, or Kira’s character is pretty strong. In the movie however there seems to be an inconsistency between the malevolent Kira and the shy scared Light. I did enjoy the film though and when I saw it in theaters with a full theatre of other Americans I have to say it was well enjoyed. The Japanese audio makes all the difference in the world. Though the English dubs were good there nothing like the original sound track when your watching a live action film.