As the Gods Will Reviews

Initial Thought: Takashi Miike is back with another off the wall gore fest feature teenagers. This was at a local film festival so I really wanted to check it out. Miike's films aren't for the faint of hear or easily offended though. Also it sounds like one hell of a ride.

Characters/Acting: I really liked all the characters here. In fact I always enjoy characters in Japanese films more than American. Most of the time they are more likeable including villains. Here is just no exception. Everyone here is awesome in their own unique ways. I loved the designs of the creatures. Everyone really did great here.

Story: This starts of straight into the action. It makes you think about Battle Royale with a mixture of the Crows Zero films (of which he directed the first two). The concept here is really interesting and it revolves around video games in a way. In fact I would say they are in a live action video game just without the restarts. Each thing they encounter is kind of like a level/boss fight. There are some really good twists and turns throughout. Man that ending was just so good. So much stuff happened in this that you just do not see coming. I'm really hoping there is a sequel with the way this ended.

Directing/Writing: Takashi Miike is a legend. Yes his movies are grotesque and usually involving rather young characters. Can you say you never heard of him? Not many can he is a very well known director universally. He isn't known for making you feel happiness though. I can't say I ever read the manga this is based from. I don't even know if the guys who wrote the manga did anything else or not. I don't even know the guy who wrote the screenplay. All I know is that this better be as crazy entertaining as I expect from a Miike film.

Final Thought: That was extremely entertaining and fun. It's gruesome yes, but that is expected from Miike. It's batshit crazy too, but then again how many Japanese films are normal? Anyways if you like video games and Takashi Miike then I would definitely say check this one out. Also if you are a fan of survival game situations. Miike never disappoints me.