Death Note

Movie Name: Death Note
Year of Release: 2017

Director: Adam Wingard

Stars: Nat Wolff, Lakeith Stanfield, Margaret Qualley, Shea Whigham, Willem Dafoe, Jason Liles, Paul Nakauchi, Jack Ettlinger, Matthew Kevin Anderson, Chris Britton

Genre: Fantasy, Horror, Mystery

Score out of ten: 4
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Synopsis:

Another one of Netflix's original productions, "Death Note" is the adaptation of a popular Japanese manga series. The film is directed by Adam Wingard, who has made a name for himself with a few thrillers, including "The Guest", which had some good reviews and propelled his name further. "Death Note" follows the story of Light Turner, a high school senior whose mother has recently passed away, leaving him scarred and in a somewhat tense relationship with his police officer father. He comes into possession of a strange book by the name of Death Note, which gives him the power to kill whomever he writes in the book. The supernatural entity that comes with the book, explains to him that he can also choose how people die. Light with this new surge of power, starts using the book to target criminals, eventually creating a reputation for this vigilante persona, causing the attention of multiple individuals, including a very talented investigator by the name of L.
"Death Note" is a film that comes a few years later after the trend of remaking Japanese films/properties died down (the last big film from that trend was probably Walter Salles' "Dark Water" with Jennifer Connelly). This one however, unlike some of the films from the early 2000s (such as Gore Verbinski's "The Ring"), feels more like a distant cousin from those features. For starters the core demographic is younger, but also the material itself lacks a sense of menace that made those popular features somewhat memorable and enticing (look as an example the mediocre and popular "The Grudge" from Takashi Shimizu, which came out in 2004). The film is definitely light in the creation of an effective environment and also in style. It features the great cinematography from David Tattersall and the score from Atticus Ross (and Leopold Ross), but the cast is just barely memorable, even the always reliable and great Willem Dafoe. A forgettable endeavor.