The Emperor's Naked Army Marches On
1987 Directed by Kazuo Hara
Synopsis
This documentary was five years in the making, and revolves around 62-year-old Okuzaki Kenzo, a survivor of the battlefields of New Guinea in World War II who gained notoriety by slingshooting steel pinballs at Emperor Showa to protest against what he considered to be the ruler's war crimes. Setting out to conduct interviews with survivors and relatives, he finds the truth of the past to be elusive, achieving a breakthrough only when he confronts ex-Sergeant Yamada, who grudgingly admits the occurrence and instructional source of certain atrocities.
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(DVD) Perhaps one of the boldest documentaries ever made. It would be easy to label Kenzo Okuzaki as a bitter troublemaker, but what he uncovers with unrelenting tenacity is both amazing withing the form itself, but also incredibly valuable to understanding the crude failures of humanity and the horrifying realities of war. Both subtlety and combative. Not surprising to see Imamura's credits on this doc, even if it is the very ambiguous "developed by."
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A summation of everything I'd seen from Imamura (who conceived it) in the last few months and a portrait of a man for whom responsibility isn't simply an abstract concept, but the only thing that matters in the world.
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One of the most spellbinding documentaries I have EVER seen, that follows THE most bizarre lead character in the history of documentaries. Kenzo Okuzaki is a man hellbent on revenge, and for good reason. He has solid evidence of cannibalism and seemingly random executions in the Japanese army during World War II. Knowing this fact, and publicly persecuting Japan's political leaders for failing to address those atrocities are the singular and absolute driving forces in his life. This man would literally die to bring those who did wrong to justice.
Or...would he? Director Kazuo Hara slips in some footage that seems to contrast Kenzo's self-appointed messiah-hood. Besides the fact that his actions speak for themselves - we're talking about a…
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One of the best documentaries I've ever seen.
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A thrilling documentary that follows war veteran Kenzo Okuzaki on his quest to track down his (former) superior officers to find out the truth behind killings that occurred in his regiment after the war had officially ended. Okuzaki is far from a likeable figure and is prone to bursts of violence directed at interviewees. However, director Kazuo Hara never makes the audience aware of his presence, thus making the film one of the most 'real' feeling documentaries ever made - shocking in both what it reveals and the audacity with which it was made.
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Incredible documentary by controversial Japanese filmmaker Kazuo Hara tracking an eccentric, ex-con former Japanese soldier who served in the infamous New Guinea campaign (Japanese high command cut off and abandoned hundreds of thousands of their own soldiers without food or assistance, leaving them desperate and starving in the deep jungles) obsessed with exposing the role of the Emperor and his own former comrades in war crimes during World War 2. Made in 1987, features some remarkable scenes including attacks on interviewees and fights with the police. If Werner Herzog had made a Japanese documentary, he'd probably have made this...
Recent reviews
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(DVD) Perhaps one of the boldest documentaries ever made. It would be easy to label Kenzo Okuzaki as a bitter troublemaker, but what he uncovers with unrelenting tenacity is both amazing withing the form itself, but also incredibly valuable to understanding the crude failures of humanity and the horrifying realities of war. Both subtlety and combative. Not surprising to see Imamura's credits on this doc, even if it is the very ambiguous "developed by."
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What the hell.
Man. -
A summation of everything I'd seen from Imamura (who conceived it) in the last few months and a portrait of a man for whom responsibility isn't simply an abstract concept, but the only thing that matters in the world.
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Steve, in this movie a man drives around Tokyo spouting nonsense over a loudspeaker. Then, the same man travels around Japan searching for Japanese veterans he suspects of eating allied POWs during World War Deuce Bigalow. When the veterans (all geriatrics, or "pensioners" if you've recently been on a Kontiki tour) don't give him the answer he wants, he attacks them. I watched it on a CRT monitor at my desk in my parent's house. Check this movie out, Steve.
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One of the most spellbinding documentaries I have EVER seen, that follows THE most bizarre lead character in the history of documentaries. Kenzo Okuzaki is a man hellbent on revenge, and for good reason. He has solid evidence of cannibalism and seemingly random executions in the Japanese army during World War II. Knowing this fact, and publicly persecuting Japan's political leaders for failing to address those atrocities are the singular and absolute driving forces in his life. This man would literally die to bring those who did wrong to justice.
Or...would he? Director Kazuo Hara slips in some footage that seems to contrast Kenzo's self-appointed messiah-hood. Besides the fact that his actions speak for themselves - we're talking about a…
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One of the best documentaries I've ever seen.
-
A thrilling documentary that follows war veteran Kenzo Okuzaki on his quest to track down his (former) superior officers to find out the truth behind killings that occurred in his regiment after the war had officially ended. Okuzaki is far from a likeable figure and is prone to bursts of violence directed at interviewees. However, director Kazuo Hara never makes the audience aware of his presence, thus making the film one of the most 'real' feeling documentaries ever made - shocking in both what it reveals and the audacity with which it was made.
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Incredible documentary by controversial Japanese filmmaker Kazuo Hara tracking an eccentric, ex-con former Japanese soldier who served in the infamous New Guinea campaign (Japanese high command cut off and abandoned hundreds of thousands of their own soldiers without food or assistance, leaving them desperate and starving in the deep jungles) obsessed with exposing the role of the Emperor and his own former comrades in war crimes during World War 2. Made in 1987, features some remarkable scenes including attacks on interviewees and fights with the police. If Werner Herzog had made a Japanese documentary, he'd probably have made this...