An analogy that comes to mind concerns live-action superhero films pre-Spider-Man, certainly pre-Iron Man and pre-Batman Begins.

That’s because on the whole Death Note cleaves rather faithfully to its source material and where it doesn’t, it actually streamlines plotlines and adds a couple of interesting new wrinkles to the epic battle between young geniuses Kira (aka Light Yagami) and the mysterious super-sleuth “L.” By the way, just so you know where I stand, for my money this is one of the preeminent cat-and-mouse battles in any genre, any medium—it’s that compelling. The live-action Death Note film, directed by genre vet Shusuke Kaneko, also holds the promise of the sheer joy in seeing these characters brought to life:  for the most part the casting is dead-on, and the dramatic (but very brief) face-to-face confrontation of protagonist and antagonist at the conclusion is fun (even if you have to wait two hours to get there).

But is that really enough for fans? Simply to see what had been rendered images now suddenly alive and real, and to relive fondly-recalled moments from Ohba and Obata’s manga or the accomplished anime series based upon it? To get the thrill of recognition from favorite characters portrayed by skilled actors, and to chuckle at some of their endearing personal quirks?

Of course there’s nothing wrong with all that good stuff, but I’m wondering if diehard fans would appreciate, um, you know, a well-made movie even more.

Hence the analogy to superhero films, and how many earlier examples suffer in comparison to those of the past decade which have radically raised the subgenre’s bar. They’ve done this by taking beloved characters and “mythic” situations/themes and wedding them to Grade A-moviemaking and world-class filmic imaginations (e.g.

In other words, the best of the recent American comic book adaptations represent the kind of movie experience to which you can bring non-fans to introduce them to a given franchise. I can’t imagine the same is remotely true of Death Note.

The opening sequence, which follows the mystical notebook as it sails through the nighttime sky before landing in our plane of existence, impressively hints at the story’s sweeping, multi-genre metaphysicality. However, the rest of the film mostly has a TV-screen smallness to it or, even worse, a direct-to-video feel. The production design is meager, the camera set-ups uninspired, the staging predictable, the cinematography drab, and the pacing lackluster in many places. Regarding the latter, the film actually does a decent job of condensing the material and fans can probably live with the nuanced character development that’s sacrificed in this effort. But to lose the intensity and creative sharpness of the Death Note saga itself? That’s too steep a price to pay.

I missed the nationwide screening of Death Note in the U.S. back in May, so I was really looking forward to catching it on the big screen yesterday. To be fair, the print screened at the New York Anime Fest may not have shown off the film to best effect. On the other hand, the print can hardly be blamed for why the audience was cracking up at the ridiculous, repetitive, bordering-on-self-parody scenes of Kira’s victims clutching their chests and foaming at the mouth. For a superior live-action thriller set in the Death Note universe, try to check out the lighter but far less embarrassing L: Change the World, a spin-off title that features the wonderful Ken'ichi Matsuyama reprising his role.