Letters from Iwo Jima
Gary and I went to see "Letters from Iwo Jima" today. In addition to an artful rendering of familiar concepts about the tragedy of war, the Japanese language film by Clint Eastwood also had a really fascinating sub-text about Samurai culture.
In one of the first scenes, a young soldier, who comes to symbolize the post-WW2 Japan, is being beaten as a "peasant" by a Samurai-like captain because the soldier was not working hard enough digging trenches on the beach. A new American-style Japanese general (who had studied in America and insisted on walking the island) encounters this cane-beating and tells the captain that he needs all soldiers able-bodied and that, if the captain needs to punish, withhold food rations. The general also cancels the beach trenches, realizing this as a ludicrous tactic against American destroyers.
Later, the same soldier is almost beheaded with a sword by another Samurai-captain because he followed orders and retreated rather than committing ritual suicide, as the rest of his unit did, for failing to hold a position. Beheading by sword is the traditional punishment by Samurai of insufficiently subordinate peasants.
The young soldier, a baker whose wife is pregnant with their first child, is saved by the same general a third time when the general orders him to remain in the cave and burn papers, rather than join the final suicide attack on the American Marines.
Finally, the soldier is discovered by a group of Marines. He becomes enraged, swinging his shovel of at the Marines wildly and ineffectually. Rather than shoot him, the Marines dodge the shovel and eventually deliver a rifle butt to the head, foreshadowing McCarthy's capable restraint in the post-surrender occupation.
The young soldier survives and returns home to his wife and child, presumably to help build a new Japan, presumably, as Gary pointed out, to emulate his venerated general in adopting American concepts for a post-Samurai culture.
In one of the first scenes, a young soldier, who comes to symbolize the post-WW2 Japan, is being beaten as a "peasant" by a Samurai-like captain because the soldier was not working hard enough digging trenches on the beach. A new American-style Japanese general (who had studied in America and insisted on walking the island) encounters this cane-beating and tells the captain that he needs all soldiers able-bodied and that, if the captain needs to punish, withhold food rations. The general also cancels the beach trenches, realizing this as a ludicrous tactic against American destroyers.
Later, the same soldier is almost beheaded with a sword by another Samurai-captain because he followed orders and retreated rather than committing ritual suicide, as the rest of his unit did, for failing to hold a position. Beheading by sword is the traditional punishment by Samurai of insufficiently subordinate peasants.
The young soldier, a baker whose wife is pregnant with their first child, is saved by the same general a third time when the general orders him to remain in the cave and burn papers, rather than join the final suicide attack on the American Marines.
Finally, the soldier is discovered by a group of Marines. He becomes enraged, swinging his shovel of at the Marines wildly and ineffectually. Rather than shoot him, the Marines dodge the shovel and eventually deliver a rifle butt to the head, foreshadowing McCarthy's capable restraint in the post-surrender occupation.
The young soldier survives and returns home to his wife and child, presumably to help build a new Japan, presumably, as Gary pointed out, to emulate his venerated general in adopting American concepts for a post-Samurai culture.
posted by Rick and Gary at 4:11 PM
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