L: Change the World (2008)

User Rating:

6.0/10   

Director:

Hideo Nakata

Writers:

Tsugumi Ôba (story) &
Takeshi Obata (story) ...

Release Date:

2009 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Horror | Thriller

Tagline:

The final death note showdown!

Plot:

A spin-out sequel to the popular Japanese thriller. This time it focuses on the character "L."

Plot Keywords:

Character Name In Title

Cast

Ken'ichi Matsuyama	...	L
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Sota Aoyama	...	Detective Matsuda
Shunji Fujimura	...	Watari
Tatsuya Fujiwara	...	Light Yagami
Mayuko Fukuda	...	Maki Nikaido
Narushi Fukuda	...	BOY
Sei Hiraizumi	...	Dr. Koichi Matsudo
Shigeki Hosokawa	...	FBI Agent Ray
Renji Ishibashi	...	Shin Kagami
Yuta Kanai	...	Tamotsu Yoshizawa
Youki Kudoh	...	Dr. Mikiko Kujo
Tim Man	...	Scientist
Bokuzô Masana	...	Asao Konishi
Shido Nakamura	...	Ryuuk (voice)
Kazuki Namioka	...	F
Kiyotaka Nanbara	...	Hideaki Suruga
Megumi Satô	...	Hatsune Misawa
Asaka Seto	...	Naomi Misora
Ron Smoorenburg	...	Sergeant
Masanobu Takashima	...	Daisuke Matoba
Yôji Tanaka	...	Taxi Driver
Erika Toda	...	Misa Amane
Shingo Tsurumi	...	Kimihiko Nikaido

Also Known As:

Spin-Off L (Japan) (working title)
The Last 21 Days of L (Japan) (working title)
Untitled Death Note Sequel (Japan) (working title)

Runtime:

Japan:129 min

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital | DTS

Certification:

Hong Kong:IIB | Singapore:PG | South Korea:15 | Malaysia:U | Australia:MA | New Zealand:R13

Filming Locations:

Bangkok, Thailand

Company:

Horipro

Trivia:

The robot that L gives Near at the end of the movie is the same robot that is shown in the anime series that belongs to Near.

Goofs:

Continuity: When the necklace is passed and the shot changes angle, the necklace changes from stuffed in the hand to neatly dangling.

Quotes:

Ryuuk: Light said he could be a God with that. Doesn't that interest you?
L: [Places Death Note down] The way Light died, was that godly?

Movie Connections:

Follows Desu nôto: The last name (2006)

Soundtrack:

I'll be waiting

Spin-Off

I imagine you have seen or at least heard of the anime/manga "Death Note". I'm not gonna spoil anything about "Death Note", but as you can imagine, as with every spin-off, you have one major character from "Death Note" appearing in this movie.

This character is none other than "L". A mysterious but very funny character, with some very weird and funny addiction habits. I don't know if this spin-off is based on an anime too, but I can say, that apart from a really fresh and exciting beginning, this movie lacks many things from the original "Death Note" (series). The actor who plays "L" (the same guy who played him in Death Note too) is fantastic in his role depiction. True to his anime roots, but only as much as the story allows him to be.

And there lies the problem. This movie is way too serious (a few absurd moments still exist) and way too dramatic. A shame then, that the thriller elements can't save the movie either. The best moments lie in the comedy or character (mostly L) bits, but even those can't save the movie entirely. My tip: Watch both "Death Note" movies and the anime series instead!