Battle Royale - Director's Cut (Special Edition) (2000) ***1/2

Many people hold Battle Royale (2000) in very high regard. While I think the film is a lot of fun, it is far from exceptional. Each time I watch it, it means a little less to me. When I saw it in 2000 or 2001, from a bootleg DVD copy, I thought it was the coolest shit in the world. These days, it's a film I still enjoy, but it hasn't aged as well as many films. Honestly I think it's the same type of popular entertainment that The Hunger Games probably is (haven't seen it yet), with more gore. But I won't form a true opinion on that, not having seen THG - that film could be terrible and pandering.