By itself with no previous history of the story Death Note is watchable at best. I say watchable because Death Note is a story that will draw almost anyone in, and the movie has a decent cast and soundtrack. I would have to advise anyone who's a fan of the manga/anime to stay away though. The stories are very different and one has a hard time even taking anything seriously. The actors' portrayals of Light, L, and Ryuk are laughable to say the least. (Seriously, I found myself bursting out laughing multiple times.) All in all, the movie is average on it's own but doesn't live up to it's name and legend for fans of Tsugumi Ohba's work. I would recommend anybody seeking out this movie to view it as a parody rather than a feature film to fully enjoy it. If anyone is a fan of the live action but hasn't experienced the anime/manga you definitely need to check it out, even if anime isn't normally your thing.