Death Note: Netflix releases trailer of cinematic adaptation of Japanese manga series

Netflix has released  the trailer of Death Note, the big screen adaptation of a Japanese manga series of the same name. The film is directed by Adam Wingard and follows the life of Light Turner, a high school student who stumbles upon a journal titled Death Note. The journal is actually dropped from the sky by Shinigami Ryuk, the God of Death. The journal allows the boy to kill anyone, whose face and name he knows, the way he wants to. [caption id=“attachment_3761561” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Still from Death Note. YouTube screengrab.[/caption] The film stars Nat Wolff, Margaret Qualley, Keith Stanfield and Willem Dafoe, who is the voice behind the Shinigami. The trailer gives us a glimpse into the action-packed, dramatic plot, laden with car crashes, gunshots and more such ‘accidental’ deaths. The God of Death coming down on earth and conferring such tremendous power on a human makes for a titillating story. The film could prove to be the ultimate entertainer for someone who enjoys supernatural elements and relishes the heroism displayed by the protagonists, while they save the world from evil forces. The trailer will also excite non-manga fans but most manga fans seem to disappointed. The makers of Death Note have been receiving severe flak for the blatant whitewashing, which is a longstanding Hollywood problem. The viewers have criticised the makers for casting white actors in roles meant for people of a different race. However, producer Roy Lee had responded to the criticism in a Buzzfeed interview saying that the series has been adapted for a different culture altogether, so some changes are bound to be there. The film will release on Netflix on 25 August. You can watch the trailer here: