Lesson of the Evil

Seiji Hasumi teaches English at a private high school, where students and colleagues alike hold him in high regard. Behind that admired exterior, he is a sociopath with no capacity for empathy. Troubled by bullying and other misconduct among the pupils, he decides to correct the school's problems himself, and his methods involve manipulation, blackmail and murder. As he eliminates people who stand in his way, the violence he set in motion escalates beyond his control.

The film is a Japanese horror thriller directed by Takashi Miike, who also wrote the screenplay. It is the twenty-sixth entry in the chronological order of the forty-two films he has directed, arriving between Ace Attorney in 2012 and Shield of Straw in 2013. Hideaki Ito plays Hasumi, with Fumi Nikaido, Shota Sometani, Kento Hayashi, Kodai Asaka and Erina Mizuno among the main cast, and thirty-six performers credited overall. It was produced by Koji Azuma, Misako Saka and Toru Mori, with TOHO, dentsu, Nippan Group Holdings and OLM involved in production.

Released in November 2012 and running 129 minutes, the film took about 26 million dollars worldwide. On IMDb it holds a rating of 6.6 from roughly 7,200 votes, and on TMDB a rating of 6.7 from about 240 votes, indicating a modest but steady reception from viewers.