Movielogr
Classmates (1967)
Directed by Sadao Nakajima
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Overview
A story of young students trained to become Kamikaze pilots in World War II.
Length 107 minutes
Actors
Koji Tsuruta | Ken Takakura | Hiroki Matsukata | Sonny Chiba | Isao Natsuyagi | Kunio Murai | Yoshiko Sakuma | Sumiko Fuji | Asao Koike | Kenjiro Ishiyama | Masaya Takahashi | Yuriko Mishima | Bin Amatsu | Rinichi Yamamoto | Shoichi Ozawa | Kô Nishimura | Shigeru Amachi | Keizo Kanie | Keiichiro Shimada | Yoshihiro Igarashi | Mitsuki Kanemitsu | Shinzô Hotta | Kojirô Kawanami | Sachio Miyagi | Hajime Nagoya | Hiroshi Hatano | Takashi Noguchi | Minken Karasawa | Kenichi Sakuragi | Aiko Mimasu | Minoru Hodaka
Viewing History (seen 1 time)
| Date Viewed | Device | Format | Source | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 08/06/2020 | TV | Broadcast | Other | 6 stars |
| (Average) 6 stars |
Viewing Notes
Often dry yet somber depiction of the Special Attack Force missions during the final months of WWII. Flutters back and forth between patriotism and nationalism tho most of the nationalism is implied thru the actions and choices of the pilots and their commanders; it’s not heavy handed as seen in other Japanese war films. This movie definitely wants to show the sympathetic side and provide some humanity to the pilots facing a moral dilemma between serving their country in a no-win battle and self preservation. Really neat to see Sumiko Fuji in a small supporting role. She’s so great.
This film would pair well with FAREWELL RABAUL directed by Ishiro Honda and covering the same material. Given that DKUTV is honoring the 75th anniversary of the end of WWII w/a double feature and decided to broadcast DIARIES OF THE KAMIKAZE (a much better title than CLASSMATES) I’m a little surprised Jo didn’t also select FAREWELL RABAUL (probably would’ve been redundant I suppose?). Or just do an entire day or weekend of war films like he’s done in the past.
Perhaps most interesting is that this movie feels like a paycheck movie for Sadao Nakajima, who is better known for his exploitation and pink films.
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