When Netflix’s “Death Note” came out on Aug. 25, I remember being super hyped to watch it. The trailer had already been around for months prior to the release and many speculations were already made about how this movie would be the first to redeem western adaptations of popular animes.

Of course, at that time, there was still the ongoing issue of “whitewashing” accusations and critics complaining about how the movie is a slap in the face to the creators and fans of the Japanese television series. However, the writers of the Death Note manga gave the adaptation a big thumbs-up,  which I took as a sign of approval to believe that this film was indeed going to be spectacular Spoiler alert: it wasn’t.

This new “Death Note,” which was altered dramatically to supposedly “attract a more Western audience”, was not downright terrible. It had a few – alright, more than just a few – captivating shots.

The backdrops were stunning at times, and the angles at which characters were filmed at were pretty cool during certain scenes. The music, or the lack of it, wasn’t so bad either. 

But despite its redeeming features, it failed to capture the essence of the entire story. In the original version, “Death Note” tells the story of an extremely intelligent but bored high school student who discovers comes to possess a little black notebook that can kill anyone whose name is written in its pages. Realizing the extent of this power, he then begins his crusade of ridding the world of criminals, catching the attention of the world’s best detective in the process. The

The two individuals, each having their own vision of justice, proceed to hunt each other down without knowing the other’s identity.

“Death Note” is a story that explores the morally grey area of what is labeled as right and wrong. It gets the reader thinking about the hypothetical “what-ifs” and challenges them to think from multiple perspectives.

Essentially, it’s got a psychological thriller vibe to it, something that the movie fails to deliver.

In the Netflix adaptation, the story revolves around a whiny, unmemorable young teenager with zero charisma who half-heartedly tries to play the role of a god-like figure. His motivation throughout the entire one hour and forty min-
utes stems from his love for this one girl who later backstabs him and tries to take the notebook for herself.

It gets better: he tries to come up with a brilliant plan at the end of the movie but instead ends up in a coma.

I wanted this movie to be good – I really did. But as much as I tried to enjoy it for what it was, I just could not sit through the entire thing without noticing the lack of character development, memorable moments, and structure.

Although I am sure that both director Adam Wingard and the cast worked their hardest to make this movie a worthwhile experience, in the end, it failed to bring out the most important aspects of the original series.

In my lifetime, I hope to be able to witness at least one western anime adaptation that does its source material justice.

Until then, I’ll just have to settle with rewatching the latter a thousand and one more times!