Films at the Embassy of Japan

Wednesday 27 July 2016 | Open 18:00 Start 18:30
Free admission. Prior registration essential.

Directed by Takashi Koizumi / 2008 / 110 min
(Japanese language with English subtitles)

After WWII, Lieutenant General Tasuku Okada goes on trial charged with executing American aircrews who had carried out indiscriminate bombing of the city of Nagoya toward the end of the war. He insists that such bombing perpetrated by the Americans was against international law and that the executions constituted punishment in line with military practices. Anxiously observed by his family in the public gallery, Okada, assisted by his chief defence counsel, Featherstone, continues with his testimony, buoyed by his determination to bear full responsibility for the executions and to protect his subordinates. His resolute attitude gradually moves the American prosecutors and the judge, who start calling him “General” with genuine respect, and the tone of the trial also appears to be changing…

Based on the judicial records of the time and the novel The Long Journey written by Shohei Ooka, the film depicts the humanity of Lieutenant General Okada, who persists in his beliefs and maintains his sense of obligation in the chaotic aftermath of the war.