What do you get when you mix 1984 with Lord of the Flies and plunk it into an alternate universe of contemporary Japan?

You get Battle Royale — a controversial pulp hit that made the book a runaway best-seller in Japan, and spawned not one, but two films, plus a manga series.

Quentin Tarantino’s latest movie offering, Kill Bill, was littered with Battle Royale references–most notably, the casting (Gogo Yubari, played by Chiaki Kuriyama was in Battle Royale I, while Sonny Chiba who played Hattori Hanzo [the name also a reference to Battle Royale] was in Battle Royale II).

In short, the story is about a randomly selected class of Jr. high kids that gets put into a government “Program” where they are taken and put into an isolated island or location and are forced to kill each other, until one survivor is left.

The books, movies, mangas, as well as the translations for all three each have differing viewpoints to every aspect of the Battle Royale storyline.

It’s a sensational and violent story, but one that has deeper emotional and psychological touches. I urge you to check it out!