Film – L: Change the World
Nov. 16th, 2009 09:38 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
narcasseI like the first two Death Note films immensely but it’s this third that’s absolutely nailed it. L: Change the World is such a perfect mix of elements that based on the strength of it I’m going to pick up the novels.
When I started reading the manga I was thoroughly entertained by Light’s megalomania and dramatic meltdowns. I was impressed by Misa’s bloody-mindedness. I was also quite decided on the fact that Yagami Soichiro was the obligatory manly hero. L on the other hand I wasn’t particularly bothered about: he was interesting as an intellectual foil for Light but not much else. And then I watched the first two films which persuaded me that perhaps L was interesting in his own right after all, then I watched the third film and came to the conclusion that the two big goddamn heroes in the series were Yagami Soichiro and L.
Admittedly the start of the film involving what seemed to be a US attack on a Thai village annoyed me at first before reason caught up with me because the Thai military would have taken said attackers apart and then when they attempted to retreat and possibly flee across the Burmese border the Burmese military would have finished the job. Other than that I’m at a bit of a loss to come up with a critical review because this has to be one of the few films that I’ve unreservedly enjoyed lately. The entire plotline came together nicely, the characters were interesting and the functional setup of things that had remained behind the scenes in the series was brought to light. Touches like L communicating with various police agencies across the world in an array of languages, Near plotting out mathematical logic with sugar cubes, Maki getting L to try standing up straight, even K and the FBI agent’s change of heart really brought the entire story together.
Of course when it really comes down to it I’m hugely biased about this film because it taps into a very specific sort of myth about justice, honourable sacrifice and the will to make a difference. It encapsulates the necessity of the noble hero sacrificing himself for the cause with dignity as well as the belief that for those he leaves behind, as long as they keep living, with each successive moment they have the chance to change the world. There are consequences but foolish actions aren’t necessarily eternal damnation because as long as there’s life there’s the potential for human growth. Like Moon Tiger it’s the case that while you live you can still change the story and when you come to face the end you do it with integrity, secure in the knowledge that you’ve lived to the fullest.
These really are two principles that will automatically bias me towards something for illustrating them: the ability to do the right thing no matter the personal cost and the knowledge that each day you live is another chance to change the story. Granted those two principles can conflict but the successful resolution of that conflict is one that either leads the hero to a glorious death or towards the promise of a new dawn which in of itself illustrates both supreme personal awareness and growth. Though of course it’s probably more quickly summed up by the French because at the end of the day it’s still noblesse oblige in a nutshell.
When I started reading the manga I was thoroughly entertained by Light’s megalomania and dramatic meltdowns. I was impressed by Misa’s bloody-mindedness. I was also quite decided on the fact that Yagami Soichiro was the obligatory manly hero. L on the other hand I wasn’t particularly bothered about: he was interesting as an intellectual foil for Light but not much else. And then I watched the first two films which persuaded me that perhaps L was interesting in his own right after all, then I watched the third film and came to the conclusion that the two big goddamn heroes in the series were Yagami Soichiro and L.
Admittedly the start of the film involving what seemed to be a US attack on a Thai village annoyed me at first before reason caught up with me because the Thai military would have taken said attackers apart and then when they attempted to retreat and possibly flee across the Burmese border the Burmese military would have finished the job. Other than that I’m at a bit of a loss to come up with a critical review because this has to be one of the few films that I’ve unreservedly enjoyed lately. The entire plotline came together nicely, the characters were interesting and the functional setup of things that had remained behind the scenes in the series was brought to light. Touches like L communicating with various police agencies across the world in an array of languages, Near plotting out mathematical logic with sugar cubes, Maki getting L to try standing up straight, even K and the FBI agent’s change of heart really brought the entire story together.
Of course when it really comes down to it I’m hugely biased about this film because it taps into a very specific sort of myth about justice, honourable sacrifice and the will to make a difference. It encapsulates the necessity of the noble hero sacrificing himself for the cause with dignity as well as the belief that for those he leaves behind, as long as they keep living, with each successive moment they have the chance to change the world. There are consequences but foolish actions aren’t necessarily eternal damnation because as long as there’s life there’s the potential for human growth. Like Moon Tiger it’s the case that while you live you can still change the story and when you come to face the end you do it with integrity, secure in the knowledge that you’ve lived to the fullest.
These really are two principles that will automatically bias me towards something for illustrating them: the ability to do the right thing no matter the personal cost and the knowledge that each day you live is another chance to change the story. Granted those two principles can conflict but the successful resolution of that conflict is one that either leads the hero to a glorious death or towards the promise of a new dawn which in of itself illustrates both supreme personal awareness and growth. Though of course it’s probably more quickly summed up by the French because at the end of the day it’s still noblesse oblige in a nutshell.
