Battle Royale

Totalitarian Japan, set in the near future. As school violence escalates, a class of high school students is sent to an isolated island, where they are forced to fight each other in a "Battle Royale"—the winner being the last one standing. If the plot reminds you of The Hunger Games, remember that the film (and the novel on which it is based) was released a decade earlier. With a much stronger focus on the brutality and ambition of the life-and-death struggle, Battle Royale is a teen drama disguised as an action film. The result was a scandalous hit, gaining a cult following through word of mouth, though its U.S. release was delayed by a decade due to fears of audience backlash.