Oba: The Last Samurai

I don't know why, but these movies move me much more than any romantic nonsense. After reading Ruth Benedict's The Chrysanthemum and the Sword and studying Japan for a few years, you feel like you get it (you don't, but whatever), so you know exactly what it meant to Ōba. All the decisions, the surrender, the "stubbornness", ... I had chills running down my spine at some of the scenes. Mao played the hatred beautifully – when her family was killed, her expression, those eyes! Wow, I salute you! Anyway, since Takenouchi is my hero, I was feasting my eyes with him the whole time, enjoying him – smeared, dirty, sweaty, desperate. An amazing commander. The other thing that made me happy was the acting by the Yanks (oftentimes foreigners in Japanese movies are worthless, but they couldn't afford to be that way here considering they're there for half the movie). WWII again from a different angle, and I liked this angle. It's entirely possible I'll revisit the film, which is not that common for me. (03/30/2014)

The film isn't bad except for some parts. I would have given it four stars, but I just couldn't get over some of the issues. I was annoyed by the Japanese idealization of Captain Oba and his relations with his subordinates and civilians. Another thing was the final march to surrender. After six months in the jungle, the soldiers would have looked much worse, and I don't mean just their uniforms. And all that activity between the POW camp and the Japanese soldiers? The Americans weren’t that naïve. Anyway, the theme was good. For those interested in the subject, I highly recommend Hiro Onoda's book “No Surrender: My Thirty-Year War.” (10/03/2016)