Fans of extreme Japanese cinema are already intimate with Kinji Fukasaku's still-controversial film Battle Royale, the bloody teenage survival epic based on a best-selling novel that spawned its own sequel and became the obvious inspiration for The Hunger Games. While it's been a staple in most fans' video collections, the film has never received any major theatrical screenings in the USA... until now.
The web platform Tugg, which enables movie fans nationwide to set up screening events in their own home town, has teamed up with the Mondo artist collective and the Alamo Drafthouse to bring Battle Royale to theaters at last. Tugg recently added the film to their library, and Mondo artists Bryan Lee O'Malley and Kevin Tong created this wicked new poster art for the re-release, which will be provided to promoters of each screening for giveaways to attendees (while supplies last). Dig it!
The first screening is already set to go, as part of the opening weekend festivities at the new Alamo Drafthouse Vintage Park in Houston on February 16th. The ticket price of $85 (go here to reserve) includes a limited edition copy of Mondo's Battle Royale poster (the regular edition, shown above, will be available from MondoTees.com soon)
You can request your own screening of Battle Royale by visiting Tugg.com, and you can find out how the Tugg platform works at their how-to page.