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Death Note R – Relight: Visions
of a God
The excellent Death
Note franchise, which thus far consists of a manga and an animated
series as well as two live-action films, shows no signs of slowing down
any time soon.
The story, for the
uninitiated, revolves around a notebook that causes the death of any
person whose name is written inside. Deliberately placed into the human
world by a Death God (or shinigami) named Ryuk, the book is discovered
by a brilliant high school student named Light Yagumi, who begins
inscribing the names of criminals in an attempt to make the world a
better place.
Needless to say, the
fact that murderers, gangsters and crooked politicians keep dropping
like flies begins to concern the authorities, who slowly figure out that
someone is using supernatural means to mete out justice to those they
deem undesirable. At this point the eccentric genius of a detective
known only as L steps in, determined to track down and convict the
vigilante and in turn bring him to justice. At this point an
epic battle of wits unfolds, with Yagumi desperate to uncover L’s real
name so he can enter it into the Death Book and finally be free of his
upstanding nemesis. L, for his part, is not going to go quietly.
This latest release from
the fine folks at Madman condenses the entire anime story arc into a
single two-hour feature, and is ostensibly told from the perspective of
Ryuk, though he appears only sporadically. This seems to be a popular
cinematic device these days, and it works well in this context, with
Ryuk recounting the tale to some of his cronies in the afterlife in an
attempt to stave off boredom for another day. The animation is first
class, and the voice actors on both the English and Japanese dubs do an
amazing job.
Though the first
Death Note live-action feature is, for my money, still the best
representation of the series, Relight is an interesting concept
that is executed with flair and drama. The concept behind the franchise
is a fascinating and compelling one, forcing the viewer to contemplate
their own morality and intelligently addressing issues such as
judgement, redemption and the corrupting influence of power.
Newcomers to the series
won’t be disappointed by this release, which assumes no prior knowledge,
and long-time fans will also get a kick out of revisiting the story from
a different perspective. All in all this is solid stuff which cements
Death Note’s place as one of the best animated series’ of the
present day.
Special Features
A 12-minute ‘Making Of’
Featuring Interviews with Cast & Crew
Original Japanese Promos |
