Misa in the anime was a high-pitched, adorable, at times dunce-like character whose main goal was getting Kira to become her partner in crime and justice as well as romance. Despite her demeanor, she is 100x smarter, more interesting, more in-depth, and more likeable than the too-cool-for-school smoking cheerleader who thinks she's deep but isn't sociopath with no real motivation for her killings. Misa revered Kira because he killed the man on trial for her parents murder that was about to be acquitted. Now there's depth for ya! It's ridiculous how they're attempt to make the character more deep ended up making her a flat, unlikable piece of paper. And *don't* get me started on the casting for Light, and those frosted-tips dye job! What the hell were they thinking??
I really loved your review! I'm tired of people telling me that I can't say the movie is bad because it's "based on the animation and not a adaptation" (wtf??). The movie is bad, is terrible, with poorly constructed characters and lack of theme. It's a bad adaptation AND a bad movie. I'm so dissapointed. Hugs from Brazil!
11:04 the height Light is falling from would’ve killed him even if he hit the water. due to the surface tension of water it would’ve been similar to falling on concrete
dude Riuk had his character flaws too. he never forced Light to do anything. he was a watcher, not someone forcing kills. Riuk just didnt care. he just wanted to be entertained
Ugh yes THANKYOU. So many people say Light in the original starts out good and the Death Note corrupts him. I think both the anime and manga makes it clear he was sociopathic to begin with and the Death Note enabled him to put his thoughts into practice. I mean it's not even a week before the dude is declaring himself a god. That's not normal. Of course this movie seems to be in the "The Death Note corrupts poor woobie Light" camp (especially with Netflix!Ryuk egging him on) and then gives original Light's arc to Misa/Mia for... some reason. I know the original is kind of sexist but this seems to be both overcompensating and sexist in a whole new way. Also I laughed out loud at the Mm, Watcha Say. Well Done.
Sai Is the original sexist? I think it does a very good job of potraying an abusive relationship and how charming an abuser can be (not just with Misa, Light is very succesful with the ladies) rather than making a statement on all women.
Disagree about the sociopathic part. At the beginning of the anime, he did feel bad for a period of time killing people. He was throwing up and showing symptoms of anxiety and early stages of depression. If anything the anime demonstrates that there is darkness within all of us. In Light, it was his sense of superiority - it's much harder to remain humble when you're beautiful, a genius and on a different level to others. The death note also creates a sense of detachment from death since it's so removed from the physical act of killing. I doubt that Light at the beginning would have been able to kill with his bare hands.
Even Ryuk said Light wrote more names in one DAY than all the other keepers of the book in their whole time with it. He was bloodthirsty from the start.
whitenostalgia, I sometimes think, what would have happen, if L picked up death note, not Light. I mean, he definetely has some darkness incide, some of his decisions are questionable. And also anime shows, that when Light lost his memories, he was quite good guy, he didn't support Kira's ideas, though admited that Kira's sense of justice matches his, an he was quite scared by it. But still, when he got his memory back, he immediately became his old self, so I'm not sure, was it death note corrupting him, or power, or it was just Light lying to himself
Also, what's so sexist about death note? There wasn't many female characters in it, but they were portrayed quite decently. Misa is this type of "girly girl" character, she's not very smart, but not every one in this anime are geniuses. Naomi Misora is really cool and smart (okay, I think Ray Pember was sexist to her, but he wasn't really developed as character). And there's a girl that was Kira's voice, I always forget her name, she was smart and beautiful, I wish there were more of her. Light's mum and sister had so little time, so it's hard to say something about them, but also there was nothing wrong with them either. Oh, and also ther was criminal lady, and Near's assisstant, they also okay. So yeah, there was only three important female characters, but I don't think they were made in a sexist way
Where the movie fail the most is at the actor. Light is suppoused to be this hUNK that all the girls have a crush on. They could've hired some gorgeous (let's say japanese because that's a great way to introduce more asian-american actors) teen actor. If the actor was beautiful it would've been harder for people to think of him as a "school shooter"
Maria M the movie fails most at his characterization. Wolf is cute, and light is cute. He's not a huge jock, just a nice looking guy. Maybe comparable to Toby (?) from skins. But even with that, they wrote him as a little BITCH. In the anime, light meets Ryuk and he's shocked, but not afraid. In the movie, wolf screams like a little girl and huddles into a ball. He sees bullies and doesn't find a clever way to stop them, he defends the poor kid by saying the nerdiest thing ever. That if they hit him it would be "child abuse". He made himself look WEAKER. If he was written as a strong character, if the actor was capable, he would be able to portray that strength. But because he was already kinda thin, baby faced, it just added on to how bitchy his character was
ms honey exactly, isnt this the same light who set up an entire fire bomb in his desk to keep anyone from getting to the book? its a year later and im still pressed xD
You, sir, got yourself a sub at "I haven't been this triggered since The Last Airbender." For the rest of my days I shall now consider you a kindred spirit.
I just don't understand why so many anime adaptations has got to be turned into this sad, pathetic lovestory? Is it a cop out so they don't have to give the characters debt or an arch? Because the plot was too much to work with? It's also insulting, it's like saying "hey, you Americans, you're not smart enough for the original plot, here, let's throw in some cliches, that'll please the general audience." And it's so lazy! Adapting a book, sure, that can be a challenge, but the anime is right, fucking there - all they need to scramble together is a decent cast and a realistic budget, follow the story and be true to the characters, and there you go. But no, they had to make Light into a whiny, snotnosed hearththrob who had to get a crazy girlfriend. I hope the director is shunned forever along with the dipshit who created the attack on titan live action movies, but even that piece of garbage had more redeeming qualities than this so called "adaptation". It just pisses me off when they don't respect the original content.
Even an accurate adaptation would've had to cut about 10 hours of story though to fit a movie format, I say just watch the anime, I don't need all my media to be a live action film. They might've been able to do it justice with several films but even a standard trilogy would have to decide what's relevant and what can be cut while still remaining cohesive. I am curious to see the Japanese effort now though, it'll just be a pain to find online no doubt.
Probably to pander to teen shipper fangirls who are convinced that everything has to be about romance and when you call them out on it they accuse you of having no feelings and not loving anybody.
I think that Death Note movie shouldn't be targeted towards a specific market of teenage viewers. That's the issue. Since it targeted specifically towards that market because the main characters happened to be teenagers (except for L), everything was simplified to fit as an edgy teen movie.
But ... the original Death Note manga was specifically targeted to a certain audience. DN ran in Shonen Jump, a magazine directly targeted at teen boys. Sure, everyone else is welcome to read it too, but it's demographic is very clear. Every other reader is just extra. For those who don't know, that's the same magazine that ran Dragon Ball.
I appreciate how methodical your reviews are, and I appreciate your perspective. I do agree that Cinderella and Beauty and the Beast didn't need live actions, but I hadn't thought about how the adaptations delegitimatizing the animation. You bring up a lot of good points (in this and other videos) and you can talk about something that upsets you in a rational way. The internet needs more reviewers like you.
We knew this movie was going to be shit even when it was just a rumor years ago. I didn't expect much watching it, but I had to stop the movie at certain points because I cringed too hard.
it was even worse then i thought it would be.. and this review brings up a lot of good points about adaptations that are often overlooked because the adaptations are so bad you just cringe through them. love the points about how a lot of native english speaking people totally overlook foreign language movies and how overlooked animated movies and shows are just because of how accustomed we are to certain types of movies/shows. im swedish and i had to learn to read subtitles before i was 10! if a child can do it so can adults, but most people are too lazy
One thing I disagree with is that L is athletic. He's a decent fighter and a really good tennis player. For him to keep up with Light in that match, he must have been athletic regardless of his awful diet.
Well I've thought about this a lot, and do you remember how L says that he sits the way he does because "He has to"? It could be that he does that to keep his blood pumping and in turn burns more calories and can keep a healthy mind while having a more sedentary lifestyle. Not to mention his showing off of what i can only assume to be Capoeira martial arts with his kicking, throwing his legs up while supporting his upper body on the floor is no easy feat and it could be argued that his general slouch and weak demeanor is to throw people off of his actual physical capabilities. And if not for the blood pumping, his sitting like that could be to simply cut off some of the blood flow in his legs to let more move to his brain
It needs to be a meme to put random songs over Misa’s death scene “I NEED A HERO. I’M HOLDIN’ ON FOR A HERO ‘TIL THE END OF THE NIGHT. HE’S GOTTA BE STRONG AND HE’S GOTTA BE FAST AND HE’S GOTTA BE FRESH FROM THE FIGHT.”
I remember when it was announced that Netflix was making a Death Note movie. A bunch of people from my high school talked about watching the movie and claiming to be anime fans. But when I asked them it they watched the anime or read the manga, they said they didn't want to not care to...
It's hard for me to even watch people compare it when the movie is something so far from the actual story of death note. Is it even fair to call it an adaptation when all they did was use the character names (sort of *cough cough* misa to Mia? *cough cough*) concept and the notebook that kills people??? I am puzzled
I watched the movie with my bf and we had to stop after about 15min in because I couldn't stop raging while watching it. Having read the manga and seen the anime and the Japanese movie, I was not only deeply disappointed, but also just furious at what they've done to this masterpiece...
You know, if the studio had just changed the title to "Death Note 2: Coming to America", not call the protagonist Light and simply stick to the book's rules this could've been a kinda dark comedy.
I feel like the most simple way to put it is that they changed too much but not enough like they changed the wrong things trying to re invent it but they also seemed like they where trying to make him the same characters at some points its like it was written by two different people with two different ideas
Dylan : agreed. The CGI on the shinagami was bad, but the characters more than made up for it. TV Nippon’s version of L was so spot-on he really seemed like he’d just stepped right out of the anime. I’m tough on adaptations of original content I love (like the Death Note manga) but I’ll concede that one was actually pretty damn good.
@@TaylorJWilliams I just finished watching the original Death Note because of this video. Thank you. I loved every minute of it. Nice review on the remake also. Thank you for watching horrible films, so we don't have to. #NotMyLight
I've watched the anime twice and have yet to watch this movie. Watching your review of it surprises me greatly, though. I never had high hopes, anime adaptations tend to suck massive balls, but the extent to which they changed the characters, dialogue and plot shocks me so much, I'm having trouble believing if the creators even read/watched the manga/anime, or if they just read the summary. Even though this dumpsterfire wouldn't do even a fucking summary justice.
So manga and anime light= psychopath with a god complex. Film Light= generic high school kid with cliche "he's evil because he was bullied at school" backstory.
Super late comment, but if they did have to make a live action adaptation (which they didn’t) it wouldn’t have hurt to separate in into a mini series, similar to the first it. Separate each major part into its own film, like the first one could be about light learning how to use the death note and the climax be him beating the FBI agents and claiming his first massive victory over L, which would make his defeat in the end satisfying
Thi movie doesn't DESERVE to carry the death note title! This movie movie doesn't even deserve to be considered A MOVIE! It's like some 13 year old emo idiot only wiki'd the plot of the anime, just barely skimmed it, and being born into money he decided to shit out a movie based on the wiki article that he didn't even thoroughly read! It's INSULTING!
I love you. I love this review. One thing we gotta clear up though-from a dirty blonde who gets mistaken as a brunette constantly-LIGHT HAS BLONDE HAIR THAT'S HIS HAIR WAS DYED I'M TRIGGERED STOP BLOND-ERASING HIM. But, yeah, Nat Wolf's hair looked dumb in the movie.
This is it. This is the best review. I found a few changes mildly interesting-but just as you said the changes weren't needed and added nothing. I was so sure that after Light and whats-her-name had their falling-out Light would go it alone. I thought that because Misa...I mean, Mia made the decision to kill Light's father so flippantly his focus would shift from boobies to justice. I was very wrong. The romance plot was annoying not only because it dumbed down Light's motivations-but why would I root for a character who gladly engages in an unhealthy relationship with a girl who tried to kill his father??? Great video. I subscribed!
This has to be one of the best honest reviews/rants I have ever seen. You laid out your points and explained them so well and elegantly and you spoke your opinion, unlike these other reviewers who tell their subscribers what they want to hear just for more views and subs. I'm glad I discovered your channel sir, respect.
I just can't digest that he tells a stranger about the book and the crimes he has already done and them shouting in the college as if everyone around them was deaf. I wish I could write their names on the Death Note again❤️
What’s tragic is that if this was a sequel/prequel it could have been super cool. The Death Note has had many masters, as the anime mentioned. Could we have watched someone else’s story instead? Keep the blond American and his psycho girlfriend, but change the names and make it a completely new story. What if he laughed off the instruction pages and used it like a regular note book? Imagine the horror when he wrote a friend’s name inside and their death was on him. What if he turned the book into the police, and someone there stole and abused it? There are infinite possibilities, and we know that Netflix can sometimes have brilliant ideas.
11:00 - A lot could have been fixed by having us see "light" give "misa" the kira smile before making clear he intentionally let her go. You immediately make it clear he has a plan an intrigue the audience to know what the plan was. And ofc, different music and facial expressions XD
And there were many ways to avoid saying the French film Breathless was based on... like how even if I know the Asian film title I'll describe it to a native speaker to hear their more correct pronunciation. Hashtag BollywoodNights
Well, I am not really against anime adaptations if you can make original and actually good. Like Nolan did a somewhat adaptation of paprika in inception. Inception doesn't take away anything from paprika other than the object used, they had their own plot and characters in it. I'm not really against adaptations if they are good, but there has never really been a good adaptation!
I love when people argue that it’s impossible to read subtitles on a show where they don’t speak English...because of course everyone in the world has a good enough grasp of English to not need subtitles on all the (primarily US) media that’s exported. Obviously. Great video and very well argued points. :)
I think what you had to say about the subtitles and foreign films is absolutely correct. This video is two years old, but you saying that reminded me of Bong Joon-ho (director of Parasite) saying that if people can get over that one inch wall of subtitles they can be open to many amazing movies. It's part of why I've always preferred subs to dubs in anime, save for a few (Panty & Stocking and Ghost Stories).
Steven Jeanrolus thank you! I'm still a relatively new channel, but the subscription rate has increased drastically in the last month or so; thanks for the support
Well, its an american remake. So, therefore you have american actors. Is the Departed racist because it has white actors instead of asian actors like the original? If they made a Japanese version of the Godfather would you even think twice about it? And besides, anime characters look more white than they do Japanese.
Jimmy ç ̈ç ̊boi I don't really care about the race of the characters, it's more about the characters themselves than it is about japan. I don't think it was really necessary for them to have Japanese actors. In fact, it would have been a little too accurate for an American remake for them to set the movie in Japan. Would it have been cool for the main character and his family to be Japanese? Yes. Could they have done that? Yes. But then they wouldn't have been able to use a popular teen actor for the film, and people wouldn't have been as inclined to watch it because they wouldn't be familiar with any of the actors. But to say that because it's an American movie, they couldn't use Japanese American actors is just kind of flawed. Light could have absolutely been Japanese. But the anime isn't about Japanese culture, it's about a book that's literally written in English because it's the most popular language spoken lol
After countless times reading the manga and watching the anime, I couldn't stand this live action remake. So many contradictions, mistakes and simply completely going away from the original
My exact thought, Kinda like how in the live action he is scared shitless for ages when he first sees Ryuk then it takes a while for ryuk to talk him into trying the deathnote. even as a live action not replication it, if they use Lights name they need his personality, and as you would know, he fills atleast 2 pages of names befor ryuk shows himself and when he does, light only gets startled and goes all bad ass sayin " im not suprised to see you ryuk... in fact... IV BEEN WAITING FOR YOU" Them 2 pages always got me "
man, you are so insightful and well-articulated. Love your methodical approach to reviews and i hope to watch a film of yours in the future, i know that would be a masterpiece.
"Let the right one in" is a Swedish film based on the Swedish book with the same name ("Låt den rätta komma in"). heh. 5 years late to the party! Great video, I really enjoy your channel.
The only problem I had with this was when messing with the music at the death scene. They actually used Take My Breath Away, and when they used it it was just as ridiculous as that scene.
Taylor J. Williams (Honestly only remembered that because I thought that was the funniest part) But still a good way to get the point across and still quality review
Your point about some people not wanting to watch a film just because it is in a language they can't understand is so pertinent and so trenchant. With subtitles in many languages nowadays, people can easily watch these films. It is simply owing to the narrow-mindedness of many in the English-speaking world who believe that English-language films (or American or European, non-English or English language films for that matter) are inherently superior that they harbour that attitude. They think that any non-western film based on a non-western cultural or social context is unwatchable, and for them, it is because they find it hard to appreciate their contexts.
Re: watching the movie to get a feel for the anime: Just watch the first episode or two. Death Note goes hard from the start, and the English actors are breathtaking.
Hey that bit about live-action adaptations being disrespectful to the animation medium made me very happy. As an animation major, I’ve been trying to explain this to people for forever and nobody listens haha. And to be honest loved your take on how Americans have to Americanize everything. Americans need to learn to get outside their circle and connect with other cultures. Anyways my friend and I watched this recently for the meme and you covered a lot of what I was thinking during that experience, great take. I will say I thought L’s actor got his voice down to a T, comparing to the english dub of the anime. I also liked the idea of L coming into possession of the Death Note, (pretending this is an AU or something,) but then the movie doesn’t go anywhere with that so I can’t even count that in its favor.
Finally Taylor, something we can both agree on! While you and I don't always share the same views, it's nice to see an intelligent teenager who examines and cares about the stories being written for today. There's only about a 7-8 year gap between us, but I know I was not as well versed in the art of storytelling and film-making at your age as you are now. Keep up the good work, my friend!
Really like your video. You are so right about all this points. They just make this life action versions because it is easy money. They are building on a already known name and know people will watch it. I think this is one of the biggest problems today. It's the same with all the sequels and prequels. This makes it harder for new stuff to find a ground, because there are already so many new versions of old, known stuff people will watch first. (I found a little error; let the right one in is a swedish film)
this might have already been said but i feel like the live-action 'battle royale' is a really good example of a really good manga, granted it leaves out a lot of context and background information but the end product of the live-action feels complete and worthwhile and essentially everything that the american live-action death note wasn't
Death note could have easily been a smash hit if they stuck to the source material and just Americanized it. But then again, it's 2018 and that could be racist or some bullshit.
In the series, if Light has not killed the first guy on television when L was broadcasting. He would never have been found out. His big ego was his end.
I grew up watching movies with subtitles since I grew up in a non-English-speaking country that actually makes subtitles instead of dubbing. I gained A LOT. I live now in Germany, where they dub movies. My English is a million times better than most Germans I know thanks to me actually hearing English in movies, and since I like listening to foreign languages (and it's more natural for me to read subtitles) I also learned a few words in a few different languages. Plus, something is always lost in translations, and I often feel that American remakes of foreign films (BTW, the original Let the Right One In is Swedish, not German) aren't only disrespecting the original by remaking only for the sake of doing the same thing in "our" language, but also missing some essential points due to cultural difference. But hey, if it's not American, it's not worth knowing, isn't it??
the only thing i have that kind of goes against what you said was the part about L not being athletic in the books released after the manga like the labb murder case they talk about how L is athletic and does things like martial arts
Totally agree with this review except for one tiny nitpick. In canon L seems to know some variation of capoeira or at least he exhibits something similar to it (highlighted in the anime when he gets into a fight with Light and in at the end of the DN novel) so I'm guessing that for some inexplicable reason the movie runners decided to change or extend that to parkour for this movie. No idea why, but possible reason for that there.
If I could make only one single change to this adaptation it would be that the actors and characterisations of L and Light.... well, that was my only thought while watching it.
I’m honestly so glad that they made the live action movie for one reason and one reason only: I had never gotten around to watching the anime, so when the movie came out I watched it. I said “wow, there’s no way the anime could be THAT bad” which led me to watch the anime. So thank you Netflix for making a movie that awful
Misa in the anime was a high-pitched, adorable, at times dunce-like character whose main goal was getting Kira to become her partner in crime and justice as well as romance. Despite her demeanor, she is 100x smarter, more interesting, more in-depth, and more likeable than the too-cool-for-school smoking cheerleader who thinks she's deep but isn't sociopath with no real motivation for her killings. Misa revered Kira because he killed the man on trial for her parents murder that was about to be acquitted. Now there's depth for ya! It's ridiculous how they're attempt to make the character more deep ended up making her a flat, unlikable piece of paper.
And *don't* get me started on the casting for Light, and those frosted-tips dye job! What the hell were they thinking??
Misa was not adorable, she was insanely irritating and despicable, the only thing adorable about her is her looks
*he looks like one of ramonas seven deadly exes.*
@@murciadoxial8056 some people like her, some people don't. It's all entirely objective
@@murciadoxial8056 way to sound like an incel buddy
@@gallowsglare Why?, because I called her despicable?
it did not have a potato chip scene
thats why it failed
also shit acting or something i dunno
To be honest, THAT scene would have been way better with hmm whatcha say
Jameela Chowdhury now that's what i call "authentic"
*_JASON DELURO_*
I’m disappointed he didn’t play I Believe I Can Fly.
100% agreed
I really loved your review! I'm tired of people telling me that I can't say the movie is bad because it's "based on the animation and not a adaptation" (wtf??). The movie is bad, is terrible, with poorly constructed characters and lack of theme. It's a bad adaptation AND a bad movie. I'm so dissapointed.
Hugs from Brazil!
That falling scene was so laughable... I'm speechless
the music, the facial expressions, the confusing scenario
yeah but the montage was pure gold 👌
11:04 the height Light is falling from would’ve killed him even if he hit the water. due to the surface tension of water it would’ve been similar to falling on concrete
Katisnotaneyeball the splash would also be like 10x bigger lmfao
you're quite the hidden gem of a channel, keep up the good work.
#notmylight
This film was just garbage
That Ferris wheel scene was hands down the absolute worst song placement in cinematic history
The edit you did with Imogen Heap over it instead actually works 10x better
dude Riuk had his character flaws too. he never forced Light to do anything. he was a watcher, not someone forcing kills. Riuk just didnt care. he just wanted to be entertained
@@MinuteOfMotive He offered the eyes, but he wasn't forcing him. He kinda saw him struggling, I suppose
@@MinuteOfMotive thats what he was saying, and you should finish it
Ugh yes THANKYOU. So many people say Light in the original starts out good and the Death Note corrupts him. I think both the anime and manga makes it clear he was sociopathic to begin with and the Death Note enabled him to put his thoughts into practice. I mean it's not even a week before the dude is declaring himself a god. That's not normal.
Of course this movie seems to be in the "The Death Note corrupts poor woobie Light" camp (especially with Netflix!Ryuk egging him on) and then gives original Light's arc to Misa/Mia for... some reason. I know the original is kind of sexist but this seems to be both overcompensating and sexist in a whole new way.
Also I laughed out loud at the Mm, Watcha Say. Well Done.
Sai Is the original sexist? I think it does a very good job of potraying an abusive relationship and how charming an abuser can be (not just with Misa, Light is very succesful with the ladies) rather than making a statement on all women.
Disagree about the sociopathic part. At the beginning of the anime, he did feel bad for a period of time killing people. He was throwing up and showing symptoms of anxiety and early stages of depression. If anything the anime demonstrates that there is darkness within all of us. In Light, it was his sense of superiority - it's much harder to remain humble when you're beautiful, a genius and on a different level to others. The death note also creates a sense of detachment from death since it's so removed from the physical act of killing. I doubt that Light at the beginning would have been able to kill with his bare hands.
Even Ryuk said Light wrote more names in one DAY than all the other keepers of the book in their whole time with it. He was bloodthirsty from the start.
whitenostalgia, I sometimes think, what would have happen, if L picked up death note, not Light. I mean, he definetely has some darkness incide, some of his decisions are questionable. And also anime shows, that when Light lost his memories, he was quite good guy, he didn't support Kira's ideas, though admited that Kira's sense of justice matches his, an he was quite scared by it. But still, when he got his memory back, he immediately became his old self, so I'm not sure, was it death note corrupting him, or power, or it was just Light lying to himself
Also, what's so sexist about death note? There wasn't many female characters in it, but they were portrayed quite decently. Misa is this type of "girly girl" character, she's not very smart, but not every one in this anime are geniuses. Naomi Misora is really cool and smart (okay, I think Ray Pember was sexist to her, but he wasn't really developed as character). And there's a girl that was Kira's voice, I always forget her name, she was smart and beautiful, I wish there were more of her. Light's mum and sister had so little time, so it's hard to say something about them, but also there was nothing wrong with them either. Oh, and also ther was criminal lady, and Near's assisstant, they also okay. So yeah, there was only three important female characters, but I don't think they were made in a sexist way
Where the movie fail the most is at the actor. Light is suppoused to be this hUNK that all the girls have a crush on. They could've hired some gorgeous (let's say japanese because that's a great way to introduce more asian-american actors) teen actor. If the actor was beautiful it would've been harder for people to think of him as a "school shooter"
Maria M the movie fails most at his characterization. Wolf is cute, and light is cute. He's not a huge jock, just a nice looking guy. Maybe comparable to Toby (?) from skins. But even with that, they wrote him as a little BITCH. In the anime, light meets Ryuk and he's shocked, but not afraid. In the movie, wolf screams like a little girl and huddles into a ball. He sees bullies and doesn't find a clever way to stop them, he defends the poor kid by saying the nerdiest thing ever. That if they hit him it would be "child abuse". He made himself look WEAKER. If he was written as a strong character, if the actor was capable, he would be able to portray that strength. But because he was already kinda thin, baby faced, it just added on to how bitchy his character was
@@MinuteOfMotive L is actually part British. It could've been a white character.
Yeah I always pictured a Zac Effron-type, but he's too old now.
ms honey exactly, isnt this the same light who set up an entire fire bomb in his desk to keep anyone from getting to the book? its a year later and im still pressed xD
You, sir, got yourself a sub at "I haven't been this triggered since The Last Airbender." For the rest of my days I shall now consider you a kindred spirit.
We shall not speak of the last airbender
I just don't understand why so many anime adaptations has got to be turned into this sad, pathetic lovestory? Is it a cop out so they don't have to give the characters debt or an arch? Because the plot was too much to work with? It's also insulting, it's like saying "hey, you Americans, you're not smart enough for the original plot, here, let's throw in some cliches, that'll please the general audience." And it's so lazy! Adapting a book, sure, that can be a challenge, but the anime is right, fucking there - all they need to scramble together is a decent cast and a realistic budget, follow the story and be true to the characters, and there you go. But no, they had to make Light into a whiny, snotnosed hearththrob who had to get a crazy girlfriend. I hope the director is shunned forever along with the dipshit who created the attack on titan live action movies, but even that piece of garbage had more redeeming qualities than this so called "adaptation". It just pisses me off when they don't respect the original content.
Even an accurate adaptation would've had to cut about 10 hours of story though to fit a movie format, I say just watch the anime, I don't need all my media to be a live action film. They might've been able to do it justice with several films but even a standard trilogy would have to decide what's relevant and what can be cut while still remaining cohesive. I am curious to see the Japanese effort now though, it'll just be a pain to find online no doubt.
@@SA80TAGE then don't make a movie out of so many hours of material, just do a show.
@@amelie5835 why are you telling me as if I had anything to do with it?
Probably to pander to teen shipper fangirls who are convinced that everything has to be about romance and when you call them out on it they accuse you of having no feelings and not loving anybody.
"I don't have time to watch this two hour movie, so I'm just going to read the synopsis on wikipedia"
>that's literally exactly what I do
MEEEM TOO
I felt pointed out and triggered
I think that Death Note movie shouldn't be targeted towards a specific market of teenage viewers. That's the issue. Since it targeted specifically towards that market because the main characters happened to be teenagers (except for L), everything was simplified to fit as an edgy teen movie.
But ... the original Death Note manga was specifically targeted to a certain audience. DN ran in Shonen Jump, a magazine directly targeted at teen boys. Sure, everyone else is welcome to read it too, but it's demographic is very clear. Every other reader is just extra.
For those who don't know, that's the same magazine that ran Dragon Ball.
you. are. so. pretty. man.
dem juicy lips 💋
I appreciate how methodical your reviews are, and I appreciate your perspective. I do agree that Cinderella and Beauty and the Beast didn't need live actions, but I hadn't thought about how the adaptations delegitimatizing the animation. You bring up a lot of good points (in this and other videos) and you can talk about something that upsets you in a rational way. The internet needs more reviewers like you.
We knew this movie was going to be shit even when it was just a rumor years ago. I didn't expect much watching it, but I had to stop the movie at certain points because I cringed too hard.
Mary A Yeah, I don't think anyone was surprised by how bad it was, but I was still angry nonetheless and felt the need to say what I was thinking
it was even worse then i thought it would be.. and this review brings up a lot of good points about adaptations that are often overlooked because the adaptations are so bad you just cringe through them. love the points about how a lot of native english speaking people totally overlook foreign language movies and how overlooked animated movies and shows are just because of how accustomed we are to certain types of movies/shows. im swedish and i had to learn to read subtitles before i was 10! if a child can do it so can adults, but most people are too lazy
Never stop dude, you're great and you'll get the attention you deserve eventually.
Catherine Smith thanks Catherine! It’s been a busy few weeks, but I’ve got two videos in the works that should be out RELATIVELY soon
11:27 “mm whatcha say” audio was obviously the best choice for this scene
One thing I disagree with is that L is athletic. He's a decent fighter and a really good tennis player. For him to keep up with Light in that match, he must have been athletic regardless of his awful diet.
wabdih he burned those calories with the POWER OF HIS MIND
Well I've thought about this a lot, and do you remember how L says that he sits the way he does because "He has to"? It could be that he does that to keep his blood pumping and in turn burns more calories and can keep a healthy mind while having a more sedentary lifestyle. Not to mention his showing off of what i can only assume to be Capoeira martial arts with his kicking, throwing his legs up while supporting his upper body on the floor is no easy feat and it could be argued that his general slouch and weak demeanor is to throw people off of his actual physical capabilities. And if not for the blood pumping, his sitting like that could be to simply cut off some of the blood flow in his legs to let more move to his brain
It needs to be a meme to put random songs over Misa’s death scene
“I NEED A HERO. I’M HOLDIN’ ON FOR A HERO ‘TIL THE END OF THE NIGHT. HE’S GOTTA BE STRONG AND HE’S GOTTA BE FAST AND HE’S GOTTA BE FRESH FROM THE FIGHT.”
Thanks for giving Let the right one in to germany, but its swedish.
I remember when it was announced that Netflix was making a Death Note movie. A bunch of people from my high school talked about watching the movie and claiming to be anime fans. But when I asked them it they watched the anime or read the manga, they said they didn't want to not care to...
Filthy Casuals
It’s a reference
It's hard for me to even watch people compare it when the movie is something so far from the actual story of death note. Is it even fair to call it an adaptation when all they did was use the character names (sort of *cough cough* misa to Mia? *cough cough*) concept and the notebook that kills people??? I am puzzled
They Dragonballed this one smh
I watched the movie with my bf and we had to stop after about 15min in because I couldn't stop raging while watching it. Having read the manga and seen the anime and the Japanese movie, I was not only deeply disappointed, but also just furious at what they've done to this masterpiece...
You know, if the studio had just changed the title to "Death Note 2: Coming to America", not call the protagonist Light and simply stick to the book's rules this could've been a kinda dark comedy.
I feel like the most simple way to put it is that they changed too much but not enough like they changed the wrong things trying to re invent it but they also seemed like they where trying to make him the same characters at some points its like it was written by two different people with two different ideas
But the Japanese adaptation is actually pretty well done.
Dylan : agreed. The CGI on the shinagami was bad, but the characters more than made up for it. TV Nippon’s version of L was so spot-on he really seemed like he’d just stepped right out of the anime.
I’m tough on adaptations of original content I love (like the Death Note manga) but I’ll concede that one was actually pretty damn good.
All the talk and criticism of the movie on TH-cam made me aware of the show and prompted to watch it!
Lana Alba Please do! You won't regret it
@@TaylorJWilliams I just finished watching the original Death Note because of this video. Thank you. I loved every minute of it. Nice review on the remake also. Thank you for watching horrible films, so we don't have to. #NotMyLight
The film's director is pathetic. He literally called anyone who didn't like it a troll.
The death scene of Light's girlfriend literally looks like a scene from Deadpool
i think one of the worst parts you forgot to mention was that light looks like one of ramonas seven deadly exes
I've watched the anime twice and have yet to watch this movie. Watching your review of it surprises me greatly, though. I never had high hopes, anime adaptations tend to suck massive balls, but the extent to which they changed the characters, dialogue and plot shocks me so much, I'm having trouble believing if the creators even read/watched the manga/anime, or if they just read the summary. Even though this dumpsterfire wouldn't do even a fucking summary justice.
The way you edited the last part with different songs was amazing. Even included the one from "The shooting AKA dear sister". So cool.
*To cringe or not to cringe, that is the question.*
M J your comment actually more philsosphical then movie itself
So manga and anime light= psychopath with a god complex.
Film Light= generic high school kid with cliche "he's evil because he was bullied at school" backstory.
kinda cool seeing the culture differences . despite shitty cliche american tropes being shameful
#Notmylight
The songs just kept getting funnier and funnier, this is some grade a reviewing. Love that I've found your channel!
Super late comment, but if they did have to make a live action adaptation (which they didn’t) it wouldn’t have hurt to separate in into a mini series, similar to the first it. Separate each major part into its own film, like the first one could be about light learning how to use the death note and the climax be him beating the FBI agents and claiming his first massive victory over L, which would make his defeat in the end satisfying
Thi movie doesn't DESERVE to carry the death note title! This movie movie doesn't even deserve to be considered A MOVIE! It's like some 13 year old emo idiot only wiki'd the plot of the anime, just barely skimmed it, and being born into money he decided to shit out a movie based on the wiki article that he didn't even thoroughly read! It's INSULTING!
I love you. I love this review. One thing we gotta clear up though-from a dirty blonde who gets mistaken as a brunette constantly-LIGHT HAS BLONDE HAIR THAT'S HIS HAIR WAS DYED I'M TRIGGERED STOP BLOND-ERASING HIM. But, yeah, Nat Wolf's hair looked dumb in the movie.
He had 90's boy band hair... 😩😂😂⚰
This is it. This is the best review.
I found a few changes mildly interesting-but just as you said the changes weren't needed and added nothing.
I was so sure that after Light and whats-her-name had their falling-out Light would go it alone. I thought that because Misa...I mean, Mia made the decision to kill Light's father so flippantly his focus would shift from boobies to justice. I was very wrong. The romance plot was annoying not only because it dumbed down Light's motivations-but why would I root for a character who gladly engages in an unhealthy relationship with a girl who tried to kill his father???
Great video. I subscribed!
Let the Right One In is a Swedish movie, not a German one.
littlemissleeches my bad; thanks for the correction
The Mia falling to her death scene is really, really hilarious. I love the edits you made xD. Great Review!!
This has to be one of the best honest reviews/rants I have ever seen. You laid out your points and explained them so well and elegantly and you spoke your opinion, unlike these other reviewers who tell their subscribers what they want to hear just for more views and subs. I'm glad I discovered your channel sir, respect.
I just can't digest that he tells a stranger about the book and the crimes he has already done and them shouting in the college as if everyone around them was deaf. I wish I could write their names on the Death Note again❤️
The Japanese live action Death Note was actually really good. I saw it in theaters when it came out, and it was what got me to watch the show.
What’s tragic is that if this was a sequel/prequel it could have been super cool. The Death Note has had many masters, as the anime mentioned. Could we have watched someone else’s story instead? Keep the blond American and his psycho girlfriend, but change the names and make it a completely new story.
What if he laughed off the instruction pages and used it like a regular note book? Imagine the horror when he wrote a friend’s name inside and their death was on him. What if he turned the book into the police, and someone there stole and abused it? There are infinite possibilities, and we know that Netflix can sometimes have brilliant ideas.
''he looks like an anime character more than the actual anime character'' I died
11:00 - A lot could have been fixed by having us see "light" give "misa" the kira smile before making clear he intentionally let her go. You immediately make it clear he has a plan an intrigue the audience to know what the plan was. And ofc, different music and facial expressions XD
11:00 Bruh, this is why i subscribed. Also, I love how you chose “I want to know what Love is”.
Oh my god this was made before Cinderella and Beauty & the Beast were made into live action flicks... this innocent child
great review taylor. let the right one in is swedish, not german though
And there were many ways to avoid saying the French film Breathless was based on... like how even if I know the Asian film title I'll describe it to a native speaker to hear their more correct pronunciation. Hashtag BollywoodNights
Well, I am not really against anime adaptations if you can make original and actually good. Like Nolan did a somewhat adaptation of paprika in inception. Inception doesn't take away anything from paprika other than the object used, they had their own plot and characters in it. I'm not really against adaptations if they are good, but there has never really been a good adaptation!
MMM WHATCHA SAYYYYYYY
When you played different songs with the terrible falling out of Ferris wheel scene, I laughed so much! This is a great video.
I love when people argue that it’s impossible to read subtitles on a show where they don’t speak English...because of course everyone in the world has a good enough grasp of English to not need subtitles on all the (primarily US) media that’s exported. Obviously.
Great video and very well argued points. :)
I think what you had to say about the subtitles and foreign films is absolutely correct. This video is two years old, but you saying that reminded me of Bong Joon-ho (director of Parasite) saying that if people can get over that one inch wall of subtitles they can be open to many amazing movies. It's part of why I've always preferred subs to dubs in anime, save for a few (Panty & Stocking and Ghost Stories).
"Did I want this film to be good? No. Did I go in with an open mind? Absolutely not."
Great videos. You should be getting way more subscribers.
Steven Jeanrolus thank you! I'm still a relatively new channel, but the subscription rate has increased drastically in the last month or so; thanks for the support
They're also supposed to be Japanese..
SidVz But why?
The Trashman I really hope that's sarcasm
its funny cuz when they were looking for actors they dead ass said no asians (we got ONE tho)
Well, its an american remake. So, therefore you have american actors. Is the Departed racist because it has white actors instead of asian actors like the original? If they made a Japanese version of the Godfather would you even think twice about it? And besides, anime characters look more white than they do Japanese.
Jimmy ç ̈ç ̊boi I don't really care about the race of the characters, it's more about the characters themselves than it is about japan. I don't think it was really necessary for them to have Japanese actors. In fact, it would have been a little too accurate for an American remake for them to set the movie in Japan. Would it have been cool for the main character and his family to be Japanese? Yes. Could they have done that? Yes. But then they wouldn't have been able to use a popular teen actor for the film, and people wouldn't have been as inclined to watch it because they wouldn't be familiar with any of the actors. But to say that because it's an American movie, they couldn't use Japanese American actors is just kind of flawed. Light could have absolutely been Japanese. But the anime isn't about Japanese culture, it's about a book that's literally written in English because it's the most popular language spoken lol
This brought a tear to my eye. Youve earned yourself a subscriber
I want your opinion on the Japanese Live Action Movies and the Japanese Live Action Drama, please.
It makes me sad cause I know there will be people who are put off of death note because of this poorly made movie
After countless times reading the manga and watching the anime, I couldn't stand this live action remake. So many contradictions, mistakes and simply completely going away from the original
My exact thought, Kinda like how in the live action he is scared shitless for ages when he first sees Ryuk then it takes a while for ryuk to talk him into trying the deathnote.
even as a live action not replication it, if they use Lights name they need his personality, and as you would know, he fills atleast 2 pages of names befor ryuk shows himself and when he does, light only gets startled and goes all bad ass sayin
" im not suprised to see you ryuk... in fact... IV BEEN WAITING FOR YOU"
Them 2 pages always got me
"
man, you are so insightful and well-articulated. Love your methodical approach to reviews and i hope to watch a film of yours in the future, i know that would be a masterpiece.
Can we talk about how the Film borke deathnote rules .LIKE NOOOOOO
soz quick correction, let the right one in is swedish, not german (:
"Let the right one in" is a Swedish film based on the Swedish book with the same name ("Låt den rätta komma in"). heh. 5 years late to the party! Great video, I really enjoy your channel.
The only problem I had with this was when messing with the music at the death scene. They actually used Take My Breath Away, and when they used it it was just as ridiculous as that scene.
Mac Davis holy shit you’re right, I completely forgot they played it
Taylor J. Williams (Honestly only remembered that because I thought that was the funniest part) But still a good way to get the point across and still quality review
Your point about some people not wanting to watch a film just because it is in a language they can't understand is so pertinent and so trenchant. With subtitles in many languages nowadays, people can easily watch these films. It is simply owing to the narrow-mindedness of many in the English-speaking world who believe that English-language films (or American or European, non-English or English language films for that matter) are inherently superior that they harbour that attitude.
They think that any non-western film based on a non-western cultural or social context is unwatchable, and for them, it is because they find it hard to appreciate their contexts.
it's adapted for the 'young adult' genre is why it's so different. that genre big in America.
Re: watching the movie to get a feel for the anime:
Just watch the first episode or two. Death Note goes hard from the start, and the English actors are breathtaking.
Hey that bit about live-action adaptations being disrespectful to the animation medium made me very happy. As an animation major, I’ve been trying to explain this to people for forever and nobody listens haha. And to be honest loved your take on how Americans have to Americanize everything. Americans need to learn to get outside their circle and connect with other cultures.
Anyways my friend and I watched this recently for the meme and you covered a lot of what I was thinking during that experience, great take. I will say I thought L’s actor got his voice down to a T, comparing to the english dub of the anime. I also liked the idea of L coming into possession of the Death Note, (pretending this is an AU or something,) but then the movie doesn’t go anywhere with that so I can’t even count that in its favor.
currently binge watching your reviews. subbed!
Finally Taylor, something we can both agree on! While you and I don't always share the same views, it's nice to see an intelligent teenager who examines and cares about the stories being written for today. There's only about a 7-8 year gap between us, but I know I was not as well versed in the art of storytelling and film-making at your age as you are now. Keep up the good work, my friend!
Thank god someone finally said it you’re a legend and you’ve earned my love (& sub)
I didn't have time to watch the video, so I just read the comments
Really like your video. You are so right about all this points. They just make this life action versions because it is easy money. They are building on a already known name and know people will watch it. I think this is one of the biggest problems today. It's the same with all the sequels and prequels. This makes it harder for new stuff to find a ground, because there are already so many new versions of old, known stuff people will watch first. (I found a little error; let the right one in is a swedish film)
this might have already been said but i feel like the live-action 'battle royale' is a really good example of a really good manga, granted it leaves out a lot of context and background information but the end product of the live-action feels complete and worthwhile and essentially everything that the american live-action death note wasn't
Death note could have easily been a smash hit if they stuck to the source material and just Americanized it. But then again, it's 2018 and that could be racist or some bullshit.
i can't decide if the ending or the ryuk introduction scene is worse
Dude, I seriously love your channel.
P.s. still waiting on that IT review tho.
In the series, if Light has not killed the first guy on television when L was broadcasting. He would never have been found out. His big ego was his end.
You’re now one of my favourite TH-cam channels 😄
the death scene legit looks like a car insurance add
I grew up watching movies with subtitles since I grew up in a non-English-speaking country that actually makes subtitles instead of dubbing. I gained A LOT. I live now in Germany, where they dub movies. My English is a million times better than most Germans I know thanks to me actually hearing English in movies, and since I like listening to foreign languages (and it's more natural for me to read subtitles) I also learned a few words in a few different languages. Plus, something is always lost in translations, and I often feel that American remakes of foreign films (BTW, the original Let the Right One In is Swedish, not German) aren't only disrespecting the original by remaking only for the sake of doing the same thing in "our" language, but also missing some essential points due to cultural difference. But hey, if it's not American, it's not worth knowing, isn't it??
i can’t wait for your it review you are a really cool channel so happy i found your videos
Stephanie Alfano it’s taken way longer than I hoped to just sit down and shoot the damned thing, but don’t lose faith - it’ll happen
the only thing i have that kind of goes against what you said was the part about L not being athletic in the books released after the manga like the labb murder case they talk about how L is athletic and does things like martial arts
Fortunately, Code Geass would be too expensive for a movie.
10:08 Ladies and Gentleman’s, this, this is what i call a masterpiece
Totally agree with this review except for one tiny nitpick. In canon L seems to know some variation of capoeira or at least he exhibits something similar to it (highlighted in the anime when he gets into a fight with Light and in at the end of the DN novel) so I'm guessing that for some inexplicable reason the movie runners decided to change or extend that to parkour for this movie. No idea why, but possible reason for that there.
Your voice is very soothing. Also your video was awesome.
If I could make only one single change to this adaptation it would be that the actors and characterisations of L and Light.... well, that was my only thought while watching it.
The sequence with all the different songs made me actually LOL
I’m honestly so glad that they made the live action movie for one reason and one reason only: I had never gotten around to watching the anime, so when the movie came out I watched it. I said “wow, there’s no way the anime could be THAT bad” which led me to watch the anime. So thank you Netflix for making a movie that awful
some animes butcher the manga
berserk fans can relate
Just put your grasses on, bro.
I find it funny that they have the entire anime on Netflix as well while calling this thing Deathnote