Episode 26: Isle of Dogs and Battle Royale

Social satire set in Japan. Sarah Watt, Jeremy Downing and William Chen discuss Isle of Dogs and Battle Royale. Discussion starts by comparing Battle Royale to our teaching experience, to The Hunger Games and to the current popularity of Battle Royale genre computer games, like Fortnite. We shift discussion to Isle of Dogs and commend the beautiful imagery, the tonal darkness of the story and how that relates to our world, and the joy of some of the gags in the film. Both films introduce romance, with young people professing their love in Battle Royale and a handful of couplings in Isle of Dogs. Our discussion then moves into how America and American cinema intersects with these films, with an American character in Isle of Dogs, made by an American creative team, and then the commentary around American involvement in other countries in Battle Royale II. Our conversation wraps up by discussing youth and how they factor into both films.