Movielogr
Under the Flag of the Rising Sun (1972)
Directed by Kinji Fukasaku
Twitter Facebook Google+Overview
A war widow determined to clear the name of her disgraced husband, who was court-martialed for desertion and executed. Official records have been destroyed, and the ministry that distributes benefits continues to deny her a pension. Twenty-six years after the war, she seeks out four survivors of her husband’s garrison. Each tells a dramatically different story about her husband’s conduct, but she is determined to learn the truth.
Length 96 minutes
Actors
Sachiko Hidari | Tetsurō Tamba | Noboru Mitani | Sanae Nakahara | Yumiko Fujita | Shinjirô Ehara | Taketoshi Naitô | Kôichi Yamamoto | Kan'emon Nakamura | Shônosuke Ichikawa | Takeshi Seki | Nenji Kobayashi | Isao Natsuyagi | Paul Maki | Mugihito | Hachizô Fujikawa | Harukazu Kitami | Hiroshi Kitasôma | Takashi Sue | Mayumi Fujisato | Yûko Hideshima | Kazuko Utsumi | Setsuko Tanaka | Yoshikazu Sugi | Gôzô Sôma | Masazumi Okabe | Hirotaka Motoyama | Takashi Matsumoto | Shigeru Mochimaru | Jack Maurice | Satarō Taki | Shintarô Mishima | Sakae Umezu | Koji Miemachi
Viewing History (seen 1 time)
| Date Viewed | Device | Format | Source | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 08/13/2014 | TV | DVD | Library | 7 stars |
| (Average) 7 stars |
Viewing Notes
The last of my current Fukasaku run of films borrowed from the library. This is poignant story of a widow searching for the truth behind her husband’s death during the last days of World War II. What this becomes is a Rashomon-like construction as the widow visits different men that each tell a different story about how her husband was ultimately executed for war crimes. Each tale is different as each man has his own memory of how events unfolded.
This is very good movie albeit a sad film as new information is received particularly the one story of how the soldiers were faced with eating other soldiers to stay alive on the island. The widow is determined to find the truth but is continually surprised by new revelations.
Fukasaku certainly expresses his attitude on the war having lived through it.
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