First of all, thanks to my Facebook friend Art Maya for bringing this too my attention.  Click on "Read More" to see the video of this Japanese movie that came out in 2000. It's based on a novel that came out in 1999. The first "Hunger Games" novel didn't come out until 2008.   Just watch the video and tell me you can't see any very specific similarities.

 

 

 

Let's see here ... after 5 minutes of researching "Battle Royal" this was all I was able to come up with:

School age children forced to fight to the death? Yes

Main characters father killed? Yes

Nightmarish dystopian future? Yes

Game is government mandated? Yes

Children are chosen by lottery? Yes

Contestants are given supplies, but don't know what supplies will be? Yes

Game is designed as a form of societal control? Yes

Initial high body count at the onset of game? Yes

Volunteers can take the place of those chosen? Yes

Alliances forged and betrayals committed? Yes

Bloody death scenes? Yes, but the Japanese version is only about ten thousand times gorier and more disturbing

Oh, and by the way ... the similarities were powerful enough that the plans to do a "Battle Royale" remake have been canceled. The film makers assumed (rightly) that their movie would be labeled as a rip-off of "Hunger Games." That's the movie that came out 8 years before "Hunger Games" was even in existence!!

 

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