BATTLE ROYALE I And II Getting US Theatrical Release

The highly controversial and totally awesome Battle Royale from director Kenji Fukasaku will be getting a 2011 release in the U.S.

Unfortunately, that release is coming from Anchor Bay, who has just picked up the rights to the 3D conversion of the film as well as its non 3D sequel.  Anchor Bay is not known for the highest quality films or releases, but at least more people and fans like myself may have a chance to see it on the big screen.

Synopsis:

Forty-two delinquent students, three days, one deserted Island: welcome to Battle Royale. A group of delinquent students from a Japanese high school have been forced by legislation to compete in a new forum of reality television.The students are each given a bag with a randomly selected weapon and a few rations of food and water and sent off to kill each other in a no-holds-barred (with a few minor rules) game to the death, which means that the students have three days to kill each other until one survives--or they all die. The movie focus on a few of the students and how they cope. Some decide to play the game like the psychotic Kiriyama or the sexual Mistuko, while others like the heroes of the movie--Shuya, Noriko, and Kawada--are trying to find a way to get off the Island without violence. However, as the numbers dwell down lower and lower on an hourly basis, is there any way for Shuya and classmates to survive?

Here is a trailer for the first film, pardon the quality: