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Deathnote
Directed by: Shusuke Kaneko Starring: Tatsuya Fujiwara, Kenichi Matsuyama
Synopsis: In Deathnote a young law student called Light (Fujiwara) is disillusioned by seeing too many criminals go free through intimidation or lack of evidence. One evening he finds a note book dropped by a winged demon called Ryuuk. The book's instructions tell Light that by writing the name of someone in the book, that person will die of a heart-attack. Soon Light is acting as an anonymous murderous vigilante, killing people without any contact. The police, unable to get any leads, bring in private detective "L", a teen prodigy.
Review: What should be noted straight away is that although this movie has a resolution of sorts, it is just the first half of the story. Death Note 2 followed quickly on the heels of the original, picking up exactly where the first movie left off. There is not a lot of action per se in this movie. Rather it centres on the battle of wits between Light and L. L suspects Light almost right from the start - he just can't prove anything. Light on the other hand must ensure that L does not discover his alter-ego and continue his vigilante rampage. Kenichi Matsuyama plays L as a child prodigy - Sherlock Holmes with a very sweet tooth. He's constantly munching on chocolate and sweets. Tatsuya Fujiwara's Light on the other hand is full of ambition and wants to eclipse his detective father's achievements. The movie unfolds like a game of cat-and-mouse on a chess board. As such it would be otherwise a very dry, stilted affair if it wasn't for the appearance of Ryuuk, the demon who dropped the book in the first place. Looking like he wouldn't be out of place in bands such as GWAR or Slipknot, Ryuuk keeps things bouyant and on the right side of fantasy. His motivations are a little cryptic as it is unclear from his actions wheher he mean for Light to discover the book, or not.
The machinations are reasonably easy to follow as Light and L set move and counter-move, each as smart as the other. Overall though I don't think the cinema is the best place to watch this, as it isn't the most cinematic of movies. Hoever it does have a good story to tell and does so with a little quirkiness, thanks to the characters of Ryuuk and L. Verdict: Action-wise there is little going on here, but it's worth seeing all the same for the intricate game of cat-and-mouse being played out by L and Light. The ending is quite a shocker and will certainly test the audience's assumptions up to that point. 6 Out of 10 (MikeOutWest)
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