Gantz

Play or die? That's the choice Kei and Kato are left with in the action manga adaptation "Gantz": After a long time, the two teenagers, old friends from their primary school days, meet again by chance in a Tokyo subway station. Just as they are about to save the life of a homeless man, the two men are hit by an oncoming express train. Contrary to expectations, the lives of the two friends are not completely extinguished. Together with other casualties, they find themselves in a mysterious room where they are given a deadly mission by a mysterious sphere called GANTZ. A daring game begins in which the participants, equipped with special weapons and protective suits, have to kill aliens within a certain period of time - or die themselves. The action manga by Hiroya Oku has sold over ten million copies worldwide. "Gantz - Play for Your Life" is the live-action adaptation of the 26-volume manga story. It is attributed to the seinen genre, i.e. entertainment aimed primarily at a male target group. The numerous fans of this genre were initially up in arms when it was announced that the upcoming live-action films would be significantly less sexual and splattery. Nevertheless, the first part by director Shinsuke Sato ("Princess Blade") was able to stay at number 1 in the Japanese box office for several weeks as a technically breathtaking action spectacle.