Kaiji (2009 film)

Kaiji is a 30-year-old man trapped in a life of mediocrity, working at a small shop and barely making ends meet. Though he longs for change, his aspirations remain unfulfilled until a loan shark named Rinko Endō confronts him about a co-signed debt left by a vanished acquaintance. Unable to repay the staggering sum, Kaiji accepts Endō's offer to participate in a high-stakes gambling tournament aboard the ship Espoir, where success would erase his debt.

Once onboard, he realizes the true cost of failure: losing contestants are forced into brutal labor camps, constructing an underground city for a ruthless crime syndicate. The syndicate's second-in-command, Yukio Tonegawa, subjects the prisoners to increasingly cruel and deadly games. Determined to reclaim his freedom and transform his life, Kaiji resolves to outmaneuver the sadistic challenges before him.

• Tatsuya Fujiwara as Kaiji Itō
• Yūki Amami as Rinko Endō
• Teruyuki Kagawa as Yukio Tonegawa
• Ken Mitsuishi as Kōji Ishida
• Kenichi Matsuyama as Makoto Sahara
• Tarō Yamamoto as Jōji Funai
• Suzuki Matsuo as Tarō Ōtsuki
• Kei Satō as Kazutaka Hyōdō

In October 2008, it was announced that the film would be directed by Tōya Satō and Tatsuya Fujiwara would star as Kaiji Itō. The Watarase Film Commission, a non-governmental organization that supports film production, posted a casting call for 70 men between the ages of 20 and 40 to be extras to play contestants of the "restricted rock-paper-scissors" game.{{cite web|last=Loo|first=Egan|title=Live-Action Film of Kaiji Manga to Open Next Summer|url=http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2008-10-15/live-action-film-of-kaiji-manga-to-open-next-summer|website=Anime News Network|date=October 15, 2008|access-date=June 18, 2018|archive-date=July 29, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110729160610/http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2008-10-15/live-action-film-of-kaiji-manga-to-open-next-summer|url-status=live}}

Yugo Kanno composed the music for the film. The original score was released on October 7, 2009.{{cite web|script-title=ja:カイジ 人生逆転ゲーム オリジナル・サウンドトラック|url=http://www.vap.co.jp/goods/1361936177970|publisher=VAP|access-date=September 15, 2019|language=ja|archive-date=December 24, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191224191527/http://vap.co.jp/goods/1361936177970/|url-status=dead}} Two songs by Japanese pop singer-songwriter Yui were featured in the film, "It's All Too Much" and "Never Say Die", used as theme song and insert song respectively.{{cite web|url=http://www.ntv.co.jp/kinro/lineup/20101015/index.html#contents|publisher=Nippon Television|access-date=August 14, 2018|language=Japanese|archive-url=https://archive.today/20180814043045/http://www.ntv.co.jp/kinro/lineup/20101015/index.html%23contents|archive-date=August 14, 2018|script-title=ja:カイジ 人生逆転ゲーム - 金曜ロードショー|url-status=live}}

Kaiji was theatrically released on October 10, 2009 in Japan.{{cite web|url=https://gigazine.net/gsc_news/en/20090615_kaiji/|title=Gambling Manga "Kaiji" adapted to Live-Action Film starring Tatsuya Fujiwara|website=Gigazine|language=en|date=June 19, 2009|access-date=October 23, 2017|archive-date=November 5, 2023|archive-url=https://archive.today/20231105090525/https://gigazine.net/gsc_news/en/20090615_kaiji/|url-status=live}}{{cite web|title=Kaiji|url=http://www.ntv.co.jp/english/pc/2011/02/kaiji-2009.html|publisher=Nippon Television|access-date=August 14, 2018|archive-url=https://archive.today/20180814035728/http://www.ntv.co.jp/english/pc/2011/02/kaiji-2009.html|archive-date=August 14, 2018|url-status=live}} It was released on Blu-ray and DVD on April 9, 2010.{{cite web|script-title=ja:カイジ 人生逆転ゲーム [DVD]|url=https://store.vap.co.jp/syousai.asp?item=VPBT-13427|publisher=VAP, Inc.|access-date=April 27, 2025|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250427032102/https://store.vap.co.jp/syousai.asp?item=VPBT-13427|archive-date=April 27, 2025|language=ja|url-status=live}}{{cite web|script-title=ja:カイジ 人生逆転ゲーム [Blu-ray]|url=https://store.vap.co.jp/syousai.asp?item=VPXT-71085|publisher=VAP, Inc.|access-date=April 27, 2025|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250427032111/https://store.vap.co.jp/syousai.asp?item=VPXT-71085|archive-date=April 27, 2025|language=ja|url-status=live}}

In the UK, the film was released on DVD by 4Digital Media under the title Kaiji: The Ultimate Gambler on July 26, 2010.{{cite web|last=Loo|first=Egan|title=Live-Action Kaiji: The Ultimate Gambler on U.K. DVD|url=http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2010-06-13/live-action-kaiji/the-ultimate-gambler-on-u.k-dvd|website=Anime News Network|access-date=November 28, 2019|date=June 13, 2010|archive-date=November 28, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191128151909/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2010-06-13/live-action-kaiji/the-ultimate-gambler-on-u.k-dvd|url-status=live}}

In September 2011, Goo Ranking conducted a web poll of "Live-Action Manga/Anime Adaptations That Worked" and Kaiji ranked sixth out of 38 live-action adaptations.{{cite web|last=Sherman|first=Jennifer|title=Goo Poll: Live-Action Manga/Anime Adaptations That Worked|url=https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/interest/2011-09-14/goo-poll/live-action-manga/anime-adaptations-that-worked|website=Anime News Network|access-date=January 5, 2020|date=September 14, 2011|archive-date=January 25, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210125005507/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/interest/2011-09-14/goo-poll/live-action-manga/anime-adaptations-that-worked|url-status=live}}

The film became Japan's sixteenth highest-grossing film of 2009, earning {{JPY|2.25 billion}} ({{US$|25 million|long=no}}) at the box office that year.{{cite web|title=2009|url=http://www.eiren.org/boxoffice_e/2009.html|website=Eiren|publisher=Motion Picture Producers Association of Japan|access-date=February 6, 2019|archive-date=March 25, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190325215244/http://www.eiren.org/boxoffice_e/2009.html|url-status=live}} Overseas, the film grossed $460,073.{{cite web|title=Kaiji: The Ultimate Gambler (2009)|url=http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/intl/?page=&id=_fKAIJIJINSEIGYAKU01|website=Box Office Mojo|access-date=February 6, 2019|archive-date=January 12, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240112054829/https://www.boxofficemojo.com/releasegroup/gr2507035141/|url-status=live}}

Carlo Santos of Anime News Network gave the film a C grade, praising its psychological tension and gambling theory for staying true to the source material. However, he criticized the flat characters, forced "closed-room" setups, and the clichéd "working-class hero versus evil old rich guy" dynamic, calling it more of a "fantasy" than a grounded story. He also noted the awkward plot adjustments made to condense the story into two hours.{{cite web|last=Santos|first=Carlo|title=Kaiji: The Ultimate Gambler (live-action)|url=http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/review/kaiji/the-ultimate-gambler/dvd-live-action-movie|website=Anime News Network|access-date=November 18, 2018|date=June 24, 2010|archive-date=January 12, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240112054828/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/review/kaiji/the-ultimate-gambler/dvd-live-action-movie|url-status=live}} Chris MaGee from Toronto J-Film Pow-Wow called the film an awkward blend of Kani Kōsen{{'}}s social critique, Battle Royale{{'}}s intensity, and televised poker He criticized the exaggerated performances of Fujiwara, Matsuyama, and Kagawa. MaGee dismissed the film as a self-indulgent spectacle, enjoyable only for its creators, and that for the audience "the whole experience is just painful."{{cite web|last=MaGee|first=Chris|title=Nippon Connection 2010: KAIJI Review|url=https://screenanarchy.com/2010/04/nippon-connection-2010-kaiji-review.html|website=Screenarchy|access-date=January 8, 2020|date=April 15, 2010|archive-date=January 12, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240112054947/https://screenanarchy.com/2010/04/nippon-connection-2010-kaiji-review.html|url-status=live}}

{{reflist}}

• [https://web.archive.org/web/20140408124319/http://www.kaiji-movie.jp/ Official website] {{in lang|ja}}
• [http://www.vap.co.jp/kaiji-movie/ VAP official website] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160420074712/http://www.vap.co.jp/kaiji-movie/ |date=2016-04-20}} {{in lang|ja}}
• [http://www.ntv.co.jp/english/pc/2011/02/kaiji-2009.html Nippon TV English official website]
• {{IMDb title|1309449|Kaiji: The Ultimate Gambler}}
• {{Anime News Network|film|15352|title=Kaiji: The Ultimate Gambler}}

{{Kaiji}}

Category:2000s Japanese-language films

Category:Films about death games

Category:Films directed by Tōya Satō

Category:Films scored by Yugo Kanno

Category:Films set in Japan

Category:Japanese films about gambling

Category:Kaiji (manga)

Category:Live-action films based on manga

Category:Toho films