My favorite Japanese movie.

Love the overall story, great cast of characters. Acting can be uneven but it doesn't bother me so much: the actors in the main roles are all generally quite good. I love the fact that they used kids who looked like 14 - 15 year olds to play 14 - 15 year olds. Great action, and I particularly love the 'countdown' aspect associated with each death. I don't think there's been another movie where you feel the 'squeeze' of an impending climax as you get close to it, like you do in Battle Royale.

The bluray looks awesome, the best I've ever seen this movie. I wish the regular edition had been included: this was the first time I'd seen the director's cut (had seen the regular edition probably 5 times), and like many director's cuts I don't feel the extra footage added a lot. I prefer the slimmed-down version.