MovieChat Forums > The Hunger Games (2012) Discussion > Enjoyed in spite of BR ripoff

Enjoyed in spite of BR ripoff

posted 10 years ago by DarkRealityX
39 replies | jump to latest

When I saw the trailer for THG, like many others I thought, "Oh, Battle Royale is getting an American adaptation." Then I learned it was unrelated, just a possible ripoff. So I stayed away, figured it can't be that good if it's not an original idea.

It was, and I learned a lesson here. Let the courts and BR author/filmmakers and THG author/filmmakers decide if damages were done, and enjoy a good movie. I haven't even heard of any legal action being taken, so if the BR people aren't bothered, why should we be? If THG fans like the idea, they have another movie to watch (also the WWE film starring Stone Cold Steve Austin, The Condemned, was based on BR) and likewise if BR fans want yet another BR type movie, they can watch THG. No reason to fret over the business side.

Nihil novi sub sole. (Latin: There is nothing new under the sun. That is, truly original ideas are becoming rarer and rarer. Enjoy... or don't.)

- Dark Reality

[–] heatherderringer 10 years ago

I haven't even heard of any legal action being taken, so if the BR people aren't bothered, why should we be?

No reason at all that I can see ...unless your a creator/copyright holder yourself, in which case you might take offense to having your brainchild raped for corporate profits, none which you will ever get to see.

However in this case THG may have re-galvanized the BR hype for a new generation and thereby made more money for Japanese studios, which may not have had such a pronounced effect had they simply been honest about the plagiarism stuff.

[–] summeriris 10 years ago

Then how fortunate Takami wasn't sued when he rewrote his book after 'The Hunger Games' became a huge hit. It still didn't make his book anything like popular in North America or Europe. It still remained unknown.

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I am the Queen of Snark, TStopped said so.

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[–] yusef-ghanima 9 years ago

i'm pretty sure you don't understand the meaning of plagiarism.

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[–] turdbadge 9 years ago

Then how fortunate Takami wasn't sued when he rewrote his book after 'The Hunger Games' became a huge hit.

Why would Takami be sued when it was his works that were plagiarized, making him the victim in this scenario?

It still didn't make his book anything like popular in North America or Europe. It still remained unknown.

Nope. With the rampant plagiarism of Battle Royale, which was already very well-known both in the Far East and the Western World, his book became even more famous. In fact he is building a new University in Osaka just on the royalties alone (not a pun)....

[–] Ezra369 8 years ago

No way, a tween version of Battle Royale did better selling in it's home market than a Japanese book!

It's almost as if there's no prior precedent for this like with vampire novels and Twilight!

I do envy you though, with such limited knowledge of this world you must be in pure awe every day by the things that other people regard as dull.

The English version of the book was released 2 years after the film in America...

[–] summeriris 8 years ago

I have no idea who you are replying to.

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I am the Queen of Snark, TStopped said so. And I have groupies, Atomic Girl said so.

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[–] ikissedaguru 8 years ago

You have something in common with Suzanne Collins. She had not heard of Battle Royale until she submitted The Hunger Games for publication. The editor who read her manuscript said something along the lines of how the book was slightly similar to Battle Royale. Suzanne responded by asking if she should read it. The editor said no, wait until she had completed the story arc so it would not be influenced. I wonder why no one mentions this (it is documented in many interviews) when they discuss the similarities. Instead they yell "plagiarism" or "ripped off" and do not even think it is possible that two authors could possibly have a similar "basic" story-line without having heard of each other.

There have been hundreds (if not thousands) of inventions that were simultaneously invented by more than one person; including the cotton gin, the radio, using electricity, light bulbs, and the telephone, where the inventors had no idea someone else was working on the project. The names in the history books though are the "first" ones to patent their ideas. The point is - it happens every day when someone comes up with something they think is unique but someone else, somewhere else, has already thought of it.

[–] Mahmood-Buttrumps 8 years ago

The mockingjay book was dull, mainly filler and with a *beep* ending.

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[–] Wolfbrother1983 10 years ago

"The Condemned" is more similar to "The Running Man".

"America isn't ready for a gay, mexican chicken sandwich" - Poultrygeist

[–] summeriris 9 years ago

That's interesting.

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I am the Queen of Snark, TStopped said so.

[–] summerinertia 9 years ago

Too bad its also completely false.

Why do you guys even comment if haven't see the actual films?

[–] CharlesTheBold 9 years ago

I hope you watch Battle Royale
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I've come up with a theory that the BR trolls have a financial interest in Battle Royale and are furious that their investment didn't pay off. Hence all the postings proclaiming Battle Royale to be a "classic" or "masterpiece", accompanied by attempts to guilt Hunger Games fans into watching Battle Royale. They even proclaim Battle Royale II to be a successful movie even though it was a thorough flop.

How else account for their repetitive posts on the subject?

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[–] summeriris 9 years ago

I think you are correct. It's a pity if they did invest in getting the DVD released on THG film's coattails. The movie didn't sell anyway.

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I am the Queen of Snark, TStopped said so.

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[–] jsycamore-181-254662 9 years ago

If this Battle Royale was such a fantastic book and film then no amount of hype would have made The Hunger Games the success it is. I think it's a case of sour grapes from BR fans.

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[–] jsycamore-181-254662 9 years ago

I certainly have no interest in Battle Royale. I enjoyed The Hunger Games and that's all that matters to me.

[–] yusef-ghanima 9 years ago

you are obviously a liar, and i can think of a reason for that.

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[–] jsycamore-181-254662 9 years ago

I haven't seen Battle Royale ( and don't wish to) so I can't comment on claims of one being a ripoff of the other but it is obvious that there are going to be influences in many books and films. You could say Game of Thrones is a Lord of the Rings ripoff or Independence Day a War of the Worlds ripoff. The fact is that every author is influenced by those who went before.

[–] summerinertia 8 years ago

You could say Game of Thrones is a Lord of the Rings ripoff or Independence Day a War of the Worlds ripoff.

Are you deliberately trying to came across as idiotic? Because I have to admit you are doing a bang up job of it.

[–] weejockxxx 9 years ago

I have to agree with you here. I've lost count of the films that have been remade , rebooted or just ripped off by Hollywood. Some Good like The Magnificent Seven, Some Bad and some indifferent. I had never heard of battle Royale when I saw this film and to be honest only watched it because Jennifer Lawrence looked totally hot in X-Men First Class. The one thing that did distinguish this film is the fact that Lawrence can act. I have watched Silver Linings Playbook and Winter's Bone and am astonished at the depth and diversity of her talent. She is not just a pretty face.
As to the film itself, it is just another in a long line of YA books written for the 'Twilight' generation. Happily I can say that, in my opinion, this film trounces 'Twilight' in all departments. Acting, dialogue, direction. The only aspect I didn't enjoy was the shaky cam style of filming. I hate that in all films. Just my opinion.
As to Battle Royale, I finally got to see it and thought it was just an ultra-violent exploitation movie. I will probably get panned for this but I felt the violence in BR was there for violence's sake, not to enhance the story. Unlike Hunger Games where it was pretty muted.