History Film / DeathNote2017

Netflix has mentioned in press releases that they're interested in making two more sequels, depending on how the final film is received by the viewers and critics.

* Chris Britton as Aaron Peltz

** Chris Britton, who dubbed Soichiro in the anime and Japanese live-action films, has a role.

* SerkisFolk: [[AvertedTrope Averted]] for Ryuk - he is portrayed in-costume by a double, augmented by makeup and CGI effects, and is voiced by Creator/WillemDafoe (who also provides mo-cap for Ryuk's face, which ''may'' be a minor subversion). Notable, as the 2006 film had Ryuk (and the other Shinigami) as completely CG characters.
* ShoutOut: One scene features a television playing ''Film/{{Phantasm}}''

* AdaptedOut: Quite a few characters--unsurprisingly, given the film's runtime of less than two hours, as compared to the much longer Japanese adaptations. [[spoiler:Other than L, Watari and James Turner/Sochiro Yagami, none of the other Kira task force members - Matsuda, Mogi, Aiwaza etc. - have counterparts in the film. Also absent is Rem, and given Mia's death at the end of the film, she's unlikely to appear in possible sequels. Near and Mello also do not appear, though it is mentioned that there were other children trained to be master detectives by the same project that trained L, making it possible that they might appear in sequels. Light's sister Sayu also doesn't have a counterpart.]]
* AdaptationalBadass: Despite never receiving the Shinigami eyes, Mia is a far more ruthless, ambitious, and domineering character than Misa was, to the point where the bloodthirsty Ryuk favours her over Light. [[spoiler:She eventually takes matters into her own hands when Light proves himself too weak, and demands that Light cede the Death Note to her in return for his life – she having written his name in the note already.]]
* AdaptationalNationality: The film shifts the story's setting from Japan to America (UsefulNotes/{{Seattle}}, to be specific), and thus, every main human character except Watari is now American, with L being black and the rest of the main cast being white.

* AdaptationalWimp:
** In the original story, Light is TheAce, a handsome, popular, athletic genius who has many female admirers and outstanding fighting skills. In this film, he's a smart but otherwise fairly average and anonymous teen.
* AdaptationNameChange: A few of the characters have new names to accommodate their {{Race Lift}}s. Light Yagami's last name is now Turner, his father Soichiro is now James, and Misa Amane is renamed Mia Sutton. Averted in the cases of Ryuk and Watari, who retain their Japanese names. [[spoiler:But subverted in Watari's case; while it was an alias in the original manga and anime, it's his real name here, as shown when the Death Note takes effect on him.]]

* AerithAndBob: The setting change from Japan to Seattle causes this - Light isn't exactly a common name in the states.

* AllGuysWantCheerleaders: Mia, who was seen cheerleading in the beginning of the movie, was Light's love interest, later girlfriend.

* BigDamnHeroes: A dark example. [[spoiler:Light is saved from L at gunpoint by a passing stranger – who's a Kira worshipper. When a raving L tells the man that Light is Kira, the man knocks him out cold for the sake of “Lord Kira”.]]
* BloodierAndGorier: Director Adam Wingard made sure that the film was much more violent than any previous iteration of the story; notably, it's the first adaptation of ''Death Note'' to be rated TV-MA since the final episode of the anime. The deaths are incredibly bloody and brutal (a la ''Film/FinalDestination'') and range from death by falling to an on-screen [[OffWithHisHead decapitation]] – specifically, the top of a guy’s head being sliced off by a metal ladder, in [[{{Gorn}} graphic detail (including a close up on the guy’s severed head)]].
* BullyingADragon: [[spoiler:Mia reveals that she has been acting behind Light's back, insults him and then tries to blackmail him by writing his name in the Death Note in a bid to become the Note's new Keeper. What she fails to consider is that Light while not as kill-happy as herself has taken a lot of lives with the note before, still has access to the Death Note and is now furious with her. She does not live to regret this.]]

** Light's mother has been killed by a criminal before the events of the film, [[spoiler:which becomes one of Light's main motivators for becoming Kira]].

* DecompositeCharacter: [[spoiler:An argument can be made that Light Yagami was split into two characters: Light Turner and Mia Sutton. Light (Turner) is the main protagonist, the one Ryuk reaches out to with the Death Note, and has the idealism and general motivations of Light from another adaptation (specifically the [[Series/DeathNote Japanese TV Drama]]). Mia, however, has Light's sociopathy, god complex, and overall bloodlust, despite supposedly fulfilling the role of Misa Amane. Tellingly, unlike most other adaptations, Light and Mia are ''equals'' and Mia eventually ends up becoming the BigBad. One can interpret this as the two sides of Light Yagami conflicting with one another]].
** WordOfGod has [[https://io9.gizmodo.com/why-netflixs-death-note-is-really-an-origin-story-and-w-1798435941 outright confirmed this.]]

* {{Elseworld}}: What the film effectively is to the original ''Manga/DeathNote''

* IcarusAllusion: During their first confrontation in person, L compares Light to Icarus through his use of the death note (he doesn't quite know yet ''how'' he killed hundreds of people all over the globe, just that it's obviously supernatural). He says his purpose is to make sure Light burns up and crashes.
* IDidWhatIHadToDo: Mia says this [[spoiler:when she confesses having killed the FBI agents]].

* ItOnlyWorksOnce: In this adaptation, [[spoiler:burning a Death Note page with a person's name on it will prevent his/her death, as long as it happens before it. But once someone is saved this way, this cannot be used again for them or anyone else.]]

-->'''Light''': [[spoiler:You killed him.]]
-->'''Mia''': No, Light, I saved you. From yourself. Again. [[spoiler:Because every time things get hard, you leave me to do the real stuff. (…) You don't get to feel superior for being a pussy.]]

** [[spoiler:Much like in the original, Light's name ends up being written in the Death Note. Unlike the original, it's not Ryuk who writes his name, but Mia. More crucially, unlike the original, Light survives, due to a loophole that was added specifically for this adaptation - that if the page someone's name is written on is burnt before the time of death, then that person won't die.]]

* OnceMoreWithClarity: In the epilogue [[spoiler:Light is in a hospital bed having just woken up from a coma. He explains to his father how he used the Death Note to save himself, cause Mia's death, absolve his name, retrieve the Death Note and get two more criminals killed along the way.]]

* PrecisionFStrike: "Okay, relax, Light. You're asleep. You're asleep and you're...dreaming of some 8 foot tall demon-looking motherfucker."

* RubeGoldbergHatesYourGuts: The first death Light causes with the Death Note plays out like a scene from ''Film/FinalDestination''. [[labelnote:Details]]A woman's shopping bag rips open spilling her groceries on the ground which causes a kid's basketball to bounce into the street. The kid runs into the street to get the ball, running in front of a car that swerves out of the way to avoid the kid. This causes a truck with a ladder on the roof to swerve as well, crashing into a parked car so that inertia causes the ladder to extend with enough force to sever the victim's head from his lower jaw.[[/labelnote]] The second murder is similar, but much more subdued.
* SerkisFolk: [[AvertedTrope Averted]] for Ryuk - he is portrayed in-costume by a double, augmented by makeup and CGI effects, and becomes voiced by Creator/WillemDafoe (who also provides mo-cap for Ryuk's face, which ''may'' be a minor subversion). Notable, as the 2006 film had Ryuk (and the other Shinigami) as completely CG characters.

* GodLivesInTheSky: ''Death Note'' kicks off with the titular ArtifactOfDoom dropping from the sky, implying that the death god that created it lives in the sky, looming above humanity.

* BloodierAndGorier: Director Adam Wingard made sure that the film was much more violent than any previous iteration of the story; notably, it's the first adaptation of ''Death Note'' to be rated TV-MA. The deaths are incredibly bloody and brutal (a la ''Film/FinalDestination'') and range from death by falling to an on-screen [[OffWithHisHead decapitation]] – specifically, the top of a guy’s head being sliced off by a metal ladder, in [[{{Gorn}} graphic detail (including a close up on the guy’s severed head)]].

* AdaptedOut: Quite a few characters--unsurprisingly, given the film's runtime of less than two hours, as compared to the much longer Japanese adaptations. [[spoiler: Other than L, Watari and James Turner/Sochiro Yagami, none of the other Kira task force members - Matsuda, Mogi, Aiwaza etc. - have counterparts in the film. Also absent is Rem, and given Mia's death at the end of the film, she's unlikely to appear in possible sequels. Near and Mello also do not appear, though it is mentioned that there were other children trained to be master detectives by the same project that trained L, making it possible that they might appear in sequels. Light's sister Sayu also doesn't have a counterpart.]]

* AdaptationalHeroism: Light, interestingly enough. [[spoiler: Unlike the original version of the character, this Light is unwilling to kill law enforcement officials pursuing him, and only decides to make an exception in L's case when he is threatened by the latter. Most notably, he writes Watari's name in the Death Note to manipulate him into discovering L's true identity, but does so with the intent of eventually sparing Watari's life by exploiting a loophole in the Death Note. He does end up killing Mia, but that's only after she tries to kill him.]]

* BullyingADragon: [[spoiler: Mia reveals that she has been acting behind Light's back, insults him and then tries to blackmail him by writing his name in the Death Note in a bid to become the Note's new Keeper. What she fails to consider is that Light while not as kill-happy as herself has taken a lot of lives with the note before, still has access to the Death Note and is now furious with her. She does not live to regret this.]]

** Mia is a close female associate of Light like Misa Amane, but is an AloofDarkHairedGirl like Kiyomi Takada. [[spoiler: She also shares a lot of characteristics with Shiori Akino from the first Japanese live-action film. Like Shiori, Mia is a fellow student of Light's, and also his girlfriend. And like Shiori, she eventually ends up being killed by Light as part of an elaborate plan of his to divert suspicion from himself.]] She also has similarities to [[Film/DeathNoteLightUpTheNewWorld Sakura Aoi]], and even the original Light Yagami.

** [[spoiler: Mia Sutton dies at the end of the film, unlike her Japanese counterpart Misa Amane, who survived previous versions of the story (though WordOfGod said she committed suicide not long after the ending of the original manga).]]
** Light's mother has been killed by a criminal before the events of the film, [[spoiler: which becomes one of Light's main motivators for becoming Kira]].

* HisNameIs: [[spoiler: Watari is killed just before he's about to reveal L's true name.]]

* IDidWhatIHadToDo: Mia says this [[spoiler: when she confesses having killed the FBI agents]].
* IndyPloy: [[spoiler: Light's plan in the climax, which results in killing Mia, saving his own life, and providing a perfect alibi against being Kira. He puts it together within ''minutes'' of Mia revealing her betrayal.]] Also doubles as a SecretTestOfCharacter, as the chain depended on Mia [[spoiler:taking the Death Note from Light]].

* LaserGuidedKarma: It's Light's idea to inspire a devoted religion toward "Kira". [[spoiler: If one of Kira's devotees hadn't knocked out L when he had Light cornered and Light was beginning to confess everything to him, L may have come to understand that Mia and Ryuk were more responsible for Watari's death. But because he gets knocked out by a Kira fanatic instead, he still ends up blaming Light, and thus has reason to write Light's name down on the Death Note page he finds at the end.]]

* LoopholeAbuse: Light uses the Death Note's ability to control the details of a death to essentially control victims for a few hours, [[spoiler: to the point of using people to retrieve information for him, save him from a planned accident and even write other names in the Death Note]]. This rule is vague enough that Light [[spoiler: is capable of controlling people with the Death Note without killing them!]] Notably, the manga explicitly states that deaths must be both physically possible and a plausible action for that person. Light tries to make the victims write a message in the manga, but it doesn't work.

** Kira does not use heart attacks as his signature move in this version, identifying himself by [[spoiler: telling his victims to say the name Kira]]. More explicitly, Mia [[spoiler:writes that Light's heart will stop, implying that he will have a heart attack like his manga counterpart, but he actually falls off a Ferris wheel and survives]].
** [[spoiler: Unlike in the Japanese versions, Light is not the one to kill all the FBI agents investigating Kira. It is Mia who does it, without his knowledge, and in a manner fairly similar to how Light did it in the original.]]
** [[spoiler: Much like in the original, Light's name ends up being written in the Death Note. Unlike the original, it's not Ryuk who writes his name, but Mia. More crucially, unlike the original, Light survives, due to a loophole that was added specifically for this adaptation - that if the page someone's name is written on is burnt before the time of death, then that person won't die.]]

* OOCIsSeriousBusiness: [[spoiler: Watari suddenly leaving L's side without any explanation or indication of where he's going tips L off that something is wrong.]]

** The confrontation between Light and L, in which they attempt to outwit each other many times, is reduced to a single scene. L's deductions in general are treated as a certainty in the film, whereas in the manga he would verify some of his theories such as [[spoiler: setting up a fake L on regional TV to confirm Kira's location]].

* SparedByTheAdaptation: [[spoiler: Both Light and L survive the events of the film, in a serious departure from previous adaptations. Also, like the 2006 Japanese film but unlike the original manga, Light's father survives]]. Although, the ending does leave it ambiguous as to whether [[spoiler: L decides to kill Light with the Death Note]].

* UnderestimatingBadassery: [[spoiler: Despite working with him to create Kira and being fully aware that he is a intelligent killer, Mia underestimates how dangerous Light can be at the film's climax. She never imagined that instead of backing down and surrendering the Note in the face of her writing his name, he would hit back by writing down her name and manipulating things to escape his death.]]

** In the original story, L is a BadassBookworm who reveals himself to be the equal of Light in sports and fighting. In this film, he is just as unathletic as Light.

* Keith Stanfield as L

* AdaptationalIntelligence: Mia is a lot more cunning than her original counterpart Misa, to the point where she has a more equal partnership with Light serving as her career, rather than being his glorified pawn.

* AdaptationExplanationExtrication: Ryuk's fondness for apples is preserved but never explained in the film.

* AdaptationalDyeJob:
** Originally an EvilRedhead in the manga, Light now has bleached blond hair.
** Misa (here named Mia) now has black hair instead of blonde. Ironically, the original Misa's hair colour has been stated to be naturally a very dark brown to black, but she bleaches it blonde as part of her image as a pop idol.

* AdaptationalNameChange: A few of the characters have new names to accommodate their {{Race Lift}}s. Light Yagami's last name is now Turner, his father Soichiro is now James, and Misa Amane is renamed Mia Sutton. Averted in the cases of Ryuk and Watari, who retain their Japanese names. [[spoiler:But subverted in Watari's case; while it was an alias in the original manga and anime, it's his real name here, as shown when the Death Note takes effect on him.]]

** Mia as well. Mia exceeds Light as Team Kira's EvilGenius, and like Ryuk is a dark influence on the considerably more [[EvenEvilHasStandards apprehensive]] Light. [[spoiler:Mia eventually tries to usurp Light as Kira on the grounds that he's too weak to do what must be done, something Misa would never do.]]

* GenreThrowback: The film is a throwback to the 1980s-style "high concept" teen movie (like ''"My Science Project"'' and ''Film/RealGenius'') [[XMeetsY blended with a]] ''SlasherMovie''. The underdog teen protagonist, moody Creator/JohnCarpenter-esque synth score, and use of 80s-era ballads by Berlin and Music/AirSupply all lend to that atmosphere.

* FreezeFrameBonus: There are scenes in the movie where Ryuk will appear on screen for just an instant. One example is [[spoiler:the chase scene between Light and L]].
* FriendOrIdolDecision: An odd twist on the trope. [[spoiler:Rather than Light having to choose between Mia or the Death Note, Mia is being held from falling by Light. When the Death Note starts to fall from the ferris wheel carriage, she reaches for it and lets go of Light's hand.]]

* RemakeCameo: Chris Britton, who dubbed Soichiro in the anime and Japanese live-action films, has a role.

** Unlike the manga [[spoiler:or really most other versions, L survives the events of the movie.]]

* StartOfDarkness: The events of the film serve as this for Light Turner. Unlike [[Manga/DeathNote Light Yagami]], this Light is basically a decent person who can't abide bullies and those who use their station of power to dodge the consequences of their actions. Whereas Yagami goes off the deep end almost immediately once he has the power of the Death Note, Turner has to be goaded into getting "creative" with his kills by Ryuk and strictly adheres to ''only'' killing criminals. Once Mia and L enter the picture, Light finds himself in over his head and [[TookALevelInBadass has to up his game]] ''by necessity''. [[spoiler: By the end of the film, he realizes that the BlackAndWhiteMorality he's been using so far hasn't worked out like he thought and is ready to use the Death Note to it's full potential... if L doesn't kill him first.]]