Death Note (2006 film)

Plot

Light Yagami is a Japanese college student whose life undergoes a drastic change when he discovers a mysterious notebook, known as the "Death Note", lying on the ground. The Death Note's instructions claim that if a person's name is written within while picturing that person's face, that person will die. Light is initially skeptical of the Death Note's authenticity, but after experimenting with it, he realizes it is real. After meeting with the previous owner of the Death Note, a Shinigami named Ryuk, Light seeks to become "god of the new world" by passing his judgment on those he deems to be evil or who get in his way. He begins using the Death Note to kill scores of criminals, becoming a notorious serial killer known as "Kira."

As the Kira killings continue, some in Japanese society come to see Kira as a righteous figure. Interpol launches an investigation of the murders, but months pass without any fruitful lead. The case eventually attracts the attention of L, a reclusive and world-famous detective. Working with Interpol and the Japanese police, L manages to confront Light through a television broadcast and demonstrates his deductive skills, correctly surmising Kira's residence in the Kanto region and that he can "kill without lifting a finger." The race begins between L and Light to discover each other's identity, and a game of cat and mouse ensues between the two geniuses.

After Light hacks into the police database to find information on acquitted criminals, L realizes that Kira is somehow related to the Kira task force led by Light's father Soichiro. Light finds out that he is being followed by an FBI agent named Raye Penber and, through a series of events, kills him and his fellow agents. Penber's fiance, Naomi Misora, takes it upon herself to uncover Kira's identity. Suspecting Light, she kidnaps his girlfriend Shiori and demands that he confess if he wants to save her. Light adamantly insists that he is not Kira. When Shiori tries to escape, Naomi shoots her and commits suicide. Shiori dies in Light's arms.

Ryuk finds that Light had actually engineered Naomi's death using the Death Note, as he had already found out her identity and written a scenario whereby Naomi would commit suicide after shooting Shiori. Ryuk is confused that Light would deliberately put Shiori in danger, but Light reveals that he had written her name in the Death Note as well. Using these events to foster hatred for Kira, Light asks to join his father's task force. While Soichiro is slightly reluctant, L immediately grants his wish and it is hinted that he is still certain that Light is Kira.

As a precursor to the second movie, Misa, an actress, is chased down an alley by a man wielding a knife, intent on killing her. As she screams for help, the man dies of a heart attack just like Kira's victims. A second Death Note lands beside her.

Development

In his production notes, director Shūsuke Kaneko explained his desire to convince audiences that, while the killing of bad humans may seem to be fair, it underestimates the corrupting influence of wielding such power (the manga series follows a very similar viewpoint). Kaneko also commented that the psychological fear of dying could be "more nightmarish than Kaiju (monsters) destroying cities and killing people".

Kaneko also stated that he wanted the film to "focus on psychological pain", explain how the deaths occur, and explain how younger people would begin to like Kira. He also removed many of the interior monologues prominent in the manga and anime to allow audiences to develop their own ideas about the characters' thoughts and beliefs, while allowing "dramatic tension".

Kaneko said that the most difficult portion of the manga to film was the scene when the investigation begins and the authorities conclude that a person is responsible for the killing of criminals. He chose to add a scene in which L explains his logic via his laptop in order to make the film "more believable" and "excite people" for the coming struggle between L and Light.

Kaneko indicated mixed feelings while directing the movie. He said that he felt "a little reservation" at how the movie would perform, since the film "uses 'death' to entertain the audience" and feels "morally unsettling". Kaneko theorized that the film may have performed well because of the Internet culture of Japan, saying that the use of the Death Note had similarities to how users attacked one another on message boards and blogs. In addition, Kaneko noted that death is "carefully" concealed, to the point where "people don't even think about it".

Filming

Kaneko chartered an underground line to film a particular scene in the first film; this was the first time in Japanese film history that an underground line was used. Kaneko used about 500 extras throughout the first film.

Theme songs

Death Note

Release

The film premiered in Japan on June 17, 2006 and topped the Japanese box office for two weeks, pushing The Da Vinci Code into second place.

Death Note (死亡筆記) was released in Hong Kong on August 10, 2006, in Taiwan on September 8, 2006, in Singapore on October 19, 2006, and in Malaysia on November 9, 2006 with English and Chinese subtitles. The world premiere was in the UA Langham Place cinema in Hong Kong on October 28, 2006, the first Japanese movie to premiere in Hong Kong. The film ended up earning US$23 million in Japan, $1.9 million in Hong Kong. The film was released in the UK on April 25, 2008.

Wired's Lisa Katayama described the film as "a delightfully suspenseful 126 minutes for anyone who likes suspense, pretty Japanese boys or bad-ass female detectives".

North American release

The first movie briefly played in certain North American theaters on May 20–21, 2008 The theatrical version featured actors from the English dub of the anime voicing over their respective characters with a few notable recasts, including Ted Cole as Lind L. Tailor's voice (dubbed in the anime by John Murphy), Ron Halder as Watari's voice (dubbed in the anime by French Tickner), Nicole Oliver as Naomi Misora's voice (dubbed in the anime by Tabitha St. Germain), and Michael Dobson as Rem's voice (dubbed in the anime by Colleen Wheeler). The film was broadcast in Canadian theaters for one night only on September 15, 2008. The DVD was released on September 16, 2008, one day after the Canadian showing.

UK release

Death Note, Death Note: The Last Name, and L: Change the World were all licensed for UK release by 4Digital Asia, a sublabel of 4Digital Media, formerly Ilc Entertainment. The first title was the inaugural release in this new sublabel, launched in 2008 to fill the gap in the UK for "Asia Extreme" titles created by the demise of Tartan. All have received limited theatrical screenings at arthouse venues around the UK, such as the ICA Cinema in central London. All three have received DVD releases in limited editions, featuring two discs in hardback-book-like packaging, mimicking the item of the title. Regular single-disc editions are replacing the limited ones for long-term release. A dedicated website focused on the franchise was also created for public use. Both films were also broadcast on Film4.

Remake

In 2007, the Malaysian paper The Star stated that more than ten film companies in the United States had expressed interest in the Death Note franchise. The American production company Vertigo Entertainment was originally set to develop the remake, with Charley and Vlas Parlapanides as screenwriters and Roy Lee, Doug Davison, Dan Lin, and Brian Witten as producers. On April 30, 2009, Variety reported that Warner Bros., the distributors for the original Japanese live-action films, had acquired the American rights for the remake, with the original screenwriters and producers still attached. On January 13, 2011, it was announced that Shane Black has been hired to direct the film, with the script being written by Anthony Bagarozzi and Charles Mondry. Black confirmed in an interview with Bleeding Cool in 2013 that he was still working on the film. On July 8, 2014, Bleeding Cool reported that Gus Van Sant would direct the film with the same producers still attached through Vertigo Entertainment, Witten Pictures and Lin Pictures. On April 27, 2015, The Hollywood Reporter reported that Adam Wingard will direct the film from a more recent draft of the script written by Jeremy Slater, that Lin, Lee, Jason Hoffs and Masi Oka will produce the film, and that Niija Kuykendall and Nik Mavinkurve will oversee the studio. On September 29, 2015, Nat Wolff was cast in the lead role. On November 12, 2015, Margaret Qualley began negotiations for the female lead.

Producers have stated the film will receive an R rating. As of April 6, 2016, Netflix is in final negotiations to pick up distribution rights for the film; production began in June 2016. In June 2016, Netflix officially cast its War Machine star Keith Stanfield in the film.