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An Imperial Japanese Army regiment surrenders to British forces in Burma at the close of World War II and finds harmony through song. A private, thought to be dead, disguises himself as a Buddhist monk and stumbles upon spiritual enlightenment. Magnificently shot in hushed black and white, Kon Ichikawa’s The Burmese Harp is an eloquent meditation on beauty coexisting with death and remains one of Japanese cinema’s most overwhelming antiwar statements, both tender and brutal in its grappling with Japan’s wartime legacy. (Criterion)
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The contemporary Japanese productions I watch contrast beautifully with these old, slow, thoughtful, and beautiful films. An army that sings songs and marches into battle, a man who decides that everyone deserves a burial worthy of a human being. Beautiful and yet poignant, even though it's set against the backdrop of war. Fascinating combinations that are so near and dear to the Japanese.
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Photo © Nikkatsu
