Death Note
2017 · Directed by Adam Wingard
Original language: English
- crime
- fantasy
- horror
- thriller
The story
Light Turner finds a supernatural notebook and uses it to mete out death, attracting the attention of a detective, a demon and a girl in his class.
What it’s like
Glossy, saturated night-city looks dominate this Netflix adaptation: rain-slicked streets pulsing with neon blues and sickly greens, cramped bedrooms lit by a cold laptop glow, and a flat, digital sheen that makes the Seattle-set world feel more like a music video than a lived-in place. Camera work is restless, with quick push-ins, dutch angles and sudden snap-zooms on the notebook's handwriting, and the score leans on synth throbs and heavy bass that keep the pulse high. The vibe is slick, brooding and feverish, a teen-noir bad-decision spiral that suits a late night alone or a Friday watch with friends who don't mind something loud. Pacing is brisk and the mood tilts toward cynical; the central arc follows a clever, arrogant high-schooler gradually losing his grip on his own moral certainty as the stakes escalate. Intensity is moderate: deaths are frequent and sometimes graphic, with bloody impacts, bodies and some grisly staging, but the violence is stylised rather than prolonged, and there is some strong language and a few tense, sexualised moments. It is aimed at fans of supernatural thrillers, serial-killer cat-and-mouse games and stylish genre remakes, not at anyone wanting something gentle.
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