The Burmese Harp (1956)
"Biruma no tategoto" (original title)

In the War's closing days, when a conscience-driven Japanese soldier fails to get his countrymen to surrender to overwhelming force, he adopts the lifestyle of a Buddhist monk.

Director:

Kon Ichikawa

Writers:

Michio Takeyama (novel), Natto Wada

Stars:

Rentarô Mikuni, Shôji Yasui, Jun Hamamura

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 3 wins & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Rentarô Mikuni	...	Captain Inouye
Shôji Yasui	...	Mizushima
Jun Hamamura	...	Ito
Taketoshi Naitô	...	Kobayashi (as Takeo Naito)
Shunji Kasuga	...	Maki
Kô Nishimura	...	Baba (as Akira Nishimura)
Keishichi Nakahara	...	Takagi
Toshiaki Ito	...	Hashimoto
Hiroshi Hijikata	...	Okada
Tomio Aoki	...	Oyama
Akinori Hanamura	...	Nakamura (as Nobuteru Hanamura)
Sanpei Mine	...	Abe
Takashi Koshiba	...	Shimizu
Tomoko Tonai
Tokuhei Miyahara	...	Nagai

Storyline

July, 1943: Japan's army is on the run. A platoon in Burma sings to keep its spirit up. Inspiration comes from their self taught lute player, Mizushima. At war's end, while they await repatriation at Mudon prison camp, Mizushima is sent to convince a Japanese company dug into a mountain that it must surrender. He fails, the British attack, many die, and his companions fear he's been killed. However, he has survived and disguised himself as a Buddhist priest. En route to Mudon to join his comrades, the frequent sight of dead Japanese soldiers overwhelms him. He vows to live a life of prayer, burying bones and bodies; his friends want him to return with them to Japan.

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Plot Keywords:

japanese | surrender | soldier | buddhist | repatriation | 

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Genres:

Drama | Music | War

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese English

Release Date:

28 April 1967 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Burmese Harp

Filming Locations:

Burma

Company Credits

Production Co:

Nikkatsu

Technical Specs

Runtime:

116 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

According to the Bloomsbury Foreign Film Guide by Ronald Bergan and Robyn Karney, this World War II film was "one of the first Japanese films concerned with pacifist themes related to the defeat of Japan in 1945."

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Goofs

The modern harp (with its pedal changes and its consequent ability to make changes of harmony, in particular)that is played throughout on the film's soundtrack does not match the much more basic instrument shown in the film.

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Quotes

Captain Inouye: The songs uplifted our spirits and sometimes our hearts.

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Connections

Remade as The Burmese Harp (1985)

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Soundtracks

"Aogeba Toutoshi"
(Traditional Japanese Farewell Song)

User Reviews

A Japanese elegy

This is a film about the immediate aftermath of war from the perspective of the defeated. A Japanese company exhausted by their retreat through the Burmese jungle learn of their nation's surrender. At the request of their allied captors one of their number, Mizushima, agrees to journey to a mountain stronghold where another company is still holding out and engaging in combat. He tries to persuade his compatriots to lay down their arms and narrowly escapes death when they are massacred after refusing to give in. Appalled by the carnage around him, Mizushima decides not to return to his colleagues or country. Disguised as a Buddhist monk, he embarks on the task of laying to rest the war dead that would otherwise fall prey to the vultures. There is nothing in the way of plot beyond this. "The Burmese Harp" is that rare thing, a war film that does not rely on action. Rather does it attempt to define the innate dignity of a former aggressor attempting to salvage some sort of meaning through reparation rather than taking the comfortable course that peace can offer. Ichikawa's tender tribute to a form of saintliness sometimes totters on the tightrope of sentimentality and oversimplification - did ever weary soldiers sing more beautifully! - but by the end the message overrides all doubts. We are witnessing a proud expansionist nation coming to terms with collapse and attempting, through the powerful symbol of Mizushima, to expiate its past. Ichikawa made this film towards the end of the golden age of monochrome. that of Welles, Reed, Wyler and Ford. Like those giants he gives us wonderful closeups. "The Burmese Harp" abounds in evocative images of Burmese villagers, Buddhist monks and Japanese soldier that once seen leave an indelible impression within the mind.