As The Gods Will
by Takashi Miike
"God, give me back my boring life."
One day Shun Takahata arrives at school to find his prayer of a change in his boring life has been answered. Takahata and the rest of his classmates are forced to play a series of games. If you lose the game, you die.
We soon find out that Takahata's school isn't the only one to be forced into these sick and twisted games. Giant cubes appear all over the world with the students trapped inside. The internet starts calling them "God's Children." No one knows why this is happening. No one knows who is behind this. The experts start to speculate all manner of explanations while more of "God's Children" are picked off one by one.
Based on the manga of the same name, As the Gods Will is directed by acclaimed master of horror, Takashi Miike. Miike is renowned for some of the most disturbing horror movies ever made. His episode, Imprint, from the Masters of Horror series is the only one to not air on Showtime because it was so brutal. This film is aimed at a younger audience and fans of the manga, so Miike's signature gore is toned down. It's not gone, just muted.
My favorite part of As the Gods Will are the games. The Daruma, Maneki Neko, Kokeshi, Shirokuma, and Matryoshka are amazing. They're the hosts of the games. Each one with a specific set of rules. I think the Daruma and the Maneki Neko's games are my favorites. They're insane and beautiful. All of the creatures are from Japanese myths, folktales, and parts of their culture. This is something that Miike knows about, having directed The Great Yokai War in 2005. I highly recommend it as well.
When I found out this was being made I got so excited. I love Japanese folktales. I love the stories about the Yokai and the myths that make Japan a magical place. Takashi Miike has always been a true artist and this is no exception. It may not be as scarring as Audition or Ichi the Killer, but it's an amazing story with incredible visuals. I can't praise this film enough. Do yourself a favor and give it a watch. IKIRU! IKIRU!
Robin Thompson, HMS