Kinji Fukasaku started work on a sequel to Battle Royale, Battle Royale II: Requiem in 2003 but died of bone cancer on January 12, 2003, after shooting only one scene. His son Kenta, born 1973 in Japan, who wrote the screenplay for both films, completed the film in his honour.

In the sequel, survivors of previous Battle Royales, led by Shuya Nanahara, have formed a terrorist group called "Wild Seven." The government creates a new Battle Royale game where the chosen class must storm Wild Seven's island stronghold and kill its leader. The sequel was panned by critics as inferior to the original, stating that the original's fresh concept, innocent characters, and occasional dark humor outshines the teen-angst driven action of the sequel. Others, however, say that it is a worthy follow-up.

The sequel has been criticised for containing some questionable politics. It is suggested (but never explicitly stated) that the United States is behind the Battle Royales. The film goes out of its way twice to catalogue the countries the United States has, in real life, invaded or attacked over the years. A flashback sequence in which the "Wild Seven" terrorist group blow up several buildings in Tokyo is reminiscent of the 9-11 terrorist attacks, complete with a structure that closely resembles the World Trade Center. At the end of the film, the last remaining members of the Wild 7 seek refuge in Afghanistan, which was the first target of the War on Terrorism. Critics have cited this as an attempt at making a blatant but flawed political statement, but others have praised the film's outspokenness.

The sequel's soundtrack has more original work by Amano and fewer classical pieces.

External links

• Official site for Battle Royale II (http://br-new.jp/index.html)
• Fan site (http://www.battleroyalefilm.net)
• Battle Royale II: Requiem (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0338763/) at the Internet Movie Database

ja:バトル・ロワイアル2