Customer Reviews

Death Note 3: L, Change the World

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The one thing I was worried about was in the description it did not say about subtitles. The movie is in japanese and has english dubbing as well as english sub titles.

L: CHANGE THE WORLD is the spin-off of the highly successful DEATH NOTE and DEATH NOTE: The Last Name. (Marketers would call it Death Note 3) The two films based on the Japanese comic book (also adapted into an anime series) were box-office hits all over Asia, so obviously, Japanese filmmakers, taking a page from Hollywood's book intends to capitalize on its fame. However, the film seems more of an ode to the series and is aimed generally to diehard fans. Those unfamiliar with the two live action films may be alienated so I suggest you watch those first before viewing this film.

The tale occurs in the final 23 days L (Kenichi Matsuyama) has left in the world. A killer virus had killed the occupants of a small village in Thailand. A former colleague named "F" discovers the secrets of the virus and sends a young boy somehow immune to the fatal disease to L's doorstep. A few days later, 12-year old Maki ( Mayuko Fukuda) also shows up with a different strain of the virus, described as a combination of Ebola and Influenza. Apparently, her father Nikaido (Shingo Tsurumi) had created the virus and a subversive group called "Blue Ship" is after it. Leader Dr. Kujo (Youki Kudoh) intends to use it to change the world by ridding it of all the useless people who inhabit it--useless people are those who abuse our natural resources; so you can guess exactly just how many people they intend to eliminate.

The film cleverly takes place during the last 23 days of L's existence. Changing the world by killing "useless" people? The first two films focused on the scum of the Earth, and the theme may be somewhat similar to the "Death Note" franchise in its own way. While "Death Note" dealt with the supernatural and mystical world of "Death Gods", this time around, the "death god" is man-made. "L: Change the World" isn't really a bad film but the absence of a real effective villain such as Light Yagami, the film fails to impress. You may say that the villains in this film are pretty routine and the direction by Hideo Nakata while very competent, has so little to work with. "Death Note 1 and 2" were full of cerebral thrills and they kept me in the edge of my seat. The mind games between Light and L were the two films' showstopper, and without an effective manga to back this film up, the antagonists were left unexplored and their goals a little too predictable.

L is the same sugar-loving genius, punk rock refugee with bad posture; quirky and full of eccentric charisma. All these seem a little wasted when the genius detective is set against a rather very underwhelming antagonist. Sadly, his displays of outsmarting and staying one step ahead of Dr. Kujo and Matoba neither immerses or impressed me. The main reason why the two Death Note films were so successful is because they were full of surprises and at times quite difficult to predict what may happen next. Every good hero needs a good villain or his exact opposite. The film's simple exposition makes the film a lot less thrilling and suspenseful but it does eliminate the complexities of the wordy dialogue that some viewers saw that it hampered "Death Note" a little. (not for me though)

Kenichi Matsuyama's portrayal of L is endearing and charming, and the character does get a lot of character development in place of displays of his super-intellect and cunning brain. The Death Note series focused more on mind games and a somewhat convoluted plotline, this time around, the film focuses more on L's personality. He develops a warm connection with the young boy (later named "Near") who is also a mathematical genius. You see more as to how L spends his last days, and it was quite entertaining to see him reject the temptation of the "notebook of death" by burning it. His involvement and compassion for Maki is quite satisfying as he tries his best to comfort her and shows that such an eccentric individual is capable of emotion. L's "Crepe and Ice Cream mobile" put a smile on my face as I am sure fans will find this very amusing and cute (?). L also tries his hand at being an action hero but all we really see him do is run, climb and straighten his back.

L isn't as compelling or interesting a figure without a mystical situation with surprising twists or a nemesis such as Light Yagami; you may say they are two sides of the same coin. A hero is only made by the villain he faces? If the producers manage to create a formidable villain worthy of L's supposed magnificent intelligence, a new franchise may work. The film just isn't as intense as its two predecessors but at least I found it fun to watch. The film is a little slower-paced than I expected and suspense is only found on occasion and when they are, it may get a bit redundant. The film just doesn't possess the darkness inherent in the "Death Note" live action films, but for die-hard fans of the series, this film is definitely still worth a look. Others may feel little lost and maybe a little bored without knowledge of this character. This film wasn't on par with "Death Note" but at least it wasn't as bad as I feared.

Recommended timidly to fans of Death Note and a good rental for everyone else [3 Stars]

Note: Death Note and Death Note: the Last Name both come highly recommended.

The original Death Note (Live Action) and Death Note II: The Last Name are two of the finest anime-to-live action adaptations I have seen. They were massive hits in Japan, and have gained a solid following in the West as well.

One of the driving forces behind the popularity was Matsuyama Kenichi (The Taste of Tea) portrayal as the enigmatic L, a genius detective who stays hidden from the world and operates from behind a computer screen. Matsuyama was a relatively unknown actor at the time, but managed to create a compelling character that was even more captivating than as originally imaged in the comic book series.

Just like with Hannibal Lector from The Silence of the Lambs, audiences demanded more L, something complicated by the fact that the character of L dies at the end of "Death Note: The Last Name." However, a death scene has never stopped a studio looking to cash in on a character's popularity!

Like many people, I was really looking forward to "L: Change the World." Not only would I get to see Matsuyama assume his most famous role again, but master horror director Nakata Hideo (Ring, Dark Water) was at the helm, and it seemed destined to be an instant hit. Unfortunately, 1+1 does not always equal 2, and "L: Change the World" is definitely the lesser entry in the Death Note trilogy.

Nakata solved the problem of L's death by setting the adventure in the twenty-three days between when L wrote his own name in Misa's Death Note, and when he was show dying peacefully eating a candy bar. The set-up begins when a young boy shows up, claiming to be the only survivor of a deadly bio-weapon outbreak in Thailand. The outbreak appears to be an act of terrorism by an eco-group who wants to wipe out a third of the human population in order to make the Earth livable again, without so many humans draining its resources. L swings into action, taking on the young boy and another young girl, Maki, on a quest to create an antidote to the deadly virus and save the world from the eco-terrorist's vile plan.

The plot, on the whole, is somewhat by-the-numbers, and pairing L up with a pair of kids was not the best decision. Nakata has said that he wanted to show L's human side, his weaknesses and emotions, but these things only serve to make L less interesting. The character works as a super-human oddity, so massive in brain power he has difficulty associating with other people. He shouldn't be paired with a cute young girl with a can-do personality and a charming smile. He shouldn't be wasting his abilities battling villains who are so campy and stupid.

Which is not to say that "L: Change the World" is horrible. Matsuyama's characterization of L is still fantastic to watch, and the film does have some great moments. L's Crepe Truck is a lot of fun, as is watching him try to calm down a girl who just watched her father get killed by offering her a candy, and not understanding why that doesn't work. The juxtaposition with L and Maki does work, but at times it comes off as too cutesy.

I think what is really missing from "L: Change the World" is a credible villain. In both Death Notes, L had to match wits with someone almost his equal, the owner of the Death Note Light Yagami. However, the leader of the eco-terrorist gang does not nearly operate on L's level, and the outcome is never in doubt.

As a fan of the Death Note films, I was glad to watch this final entry. It is a lesser film, but worth watching for Matsuyama's portrayal of L. Seeing both earlier films is definitely a pre-requisite, as certain parts of "L: Change the World" won't make sense without understanding the previous installments.

I knew this movie was a "spin off"...I knew this movie would not be about Light or the Death Note (even though both are mentioned a few times...so with that said, I really enjoyed this movie. I loved seeing a more "personal" side of L. Its a part of his character that HAD to be there, but was never shown in the Death Note films. I recommend this movie to anyone that really enjoyed the Death Note movies as much as I did, just don't watch L Change The World with any expectations, and allow yourselves to enjoy it for what it is.

Definitely not as good as the book nor anime. Has a bit of a different storyline than the book.

This was an awesome addition to the Death Note universe. L grows from a robotic, isolated individual to a real live loving and caring human being. I wish they would cheat and find a way to keep L alive - maybe he could have his own series?

I was'nt really expecting much from this sequel to the Death Note saga, but I was pleasently surprised by it. The story centers around the strange, always hungry detective from the first two films, "L". This time, he gets involved with a plot by some crazies to release a bio-weapon that will kill millions. But the clock is ticking in more ways than one: L only has a few weeks to live due to his writing his own name in the Death Note book. In my opinion, this film is just as good as the first two and is a great end to the whole story arc. Fans of Asain cinema will love this one as well as those who rarely watch these types of movies.

L Change the World is a spin-off of Death Note.

In my opinion I liked this one better then the first too. They had a great story line and it shows you what L did the last 23 days he had left to live. You even get to meet some other people from Wammy's. It's pretty great.

This movie is just mainly for the big L fans out there. If you love L then I bet you would like this movie.

Ever since I got it i've watched it ALOT! I'm kinda addicted to it. xD and I've even started acting like L more xD

Anyway, I highly reccomend you watch this movie(:

This movie was simply okay. I loved both L and Light in the Death Note movies and animes/mangas but L just didn't seem like L in this movie. Both his deductive reasoning (what little he had to do since almost the whole plot line was handed to him by chance encounters) and humorous eccentricities were very diminished. I think to really enjoy this movie you really have to enjoy L even if he's not quiet himself. However, it was nice to see some stuff at the beginning that gave some insight into events in the other two movies, and the plot was good, it just wasn't Death Note. Even with the villain being a former member of Whammy House there never seemed to be the battle of wits you see between Light and L. So I suppose if you want a potentially heart warming story involving L and a decent plot you might like this movie, if you want the Psycho-drama of Death Note you won't find it here and, like me you'll probably be a little disappointed. My honest recommendation is to rent this if you really want to see it.

Like a few reviewers have said the movie doesn't revolve around the the deathnote storyline itself but the last few days of the detective L and the legacy he wishes to leave behind him. The movie is very entertaining without needing the effects of the shinigami like Ryuk but has its own little devious plot of some dark groups wish to release a deadly plague on mankind to in their warped minds save the planet earth. The actors and actresses for this movie played their parts amazingly well especially the actor for L and while there isn't any true connection other than L to the Deathnote series it's still a very entertaining movie to see. The video as expected is very sharp and clear with no blurriness or distortions to worry about, and for the dubbed voices I'm glad that they were able to get a very talented cast for their roles and am glad to hear they have the same voice actor for the character of L as the one in the series. So if you've already gotten the first two DN movies go ahead and complete the trilogy it's definitely worth checking out...