Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence (1983)

User Rating:

7.1/10   

Director:

Nagisa Oshima

Writers:

Paul Mayersberg (writer)
Nagisa Oshima (screenplay)

Release Date:

2 September 1983 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | War

Tagline:

Java, 1942 - A clash of cultures, a test of the human spirit.

Plot:

In 1942 British soldier Jack Celliers comes to a japanese prison camp. The camp is run by Yonoi, who has a firm belief in discipline...

Plot Keywords:

Japanese | British Soldier | Prison | British | Soldier

Awards:

Won BAFTA Film Award. Another 8 wins & 6 nominations

Cast

David Bowie	...	Maj. Jack 'Strafer' Celliers
Tom Conti	...	Col. John Lawrence
Ryuichi Sakamoto	...	Capt. Yonoi
Takeshi Kitano	...	Sgt. Gengo Hara (as Takeshi)
Jack Thompson	...	Group Capt. Hicksley
Johnny Okura	...	Kanemoto (as Johnny Ohkura)
Alistair Browning	...	De Jong
James Malcolm	...	Celliers' Brother
Chris Broun	...	Celliers aged 12
Yuya Uchida	...	Commandant of Military Prison
Ryunosuke Kaneda	...	President of the Court
Takashi Naitô	...	Lt. Iwata
Tamio Ishikura	...	Prosecutor
Rokko Toura	...	Interpreter
Kan Mikami	...	Lt. Ito

Also Known As:

Senjô no merî Kurisumasu (Japan)

Runtime:

124 min

Country:

UK | Japan

Language:

English | Japanese

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.50 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:16 | Italy:VM14 | Portugal:M/16 | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Finland:K-16 | France:U | Norway:16 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Auckland, New Zealand

Company:

Asahi National Broadcasting Company

Trivia:

Tom Conti does not speak a word of Japanese. He learned his Japanese dialog phonetically.

Goofs:

Factual errors: In the final scene in the prison cell, the cross belt of Lt Col Lawrence's Sam Browne is fitted back to front.

Quotes:

[last lines]
Sgt. Gengo Hara: Merry Christmas. Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence!

Movie Connections:

Featured in 100 Years of Japanese Cinema (1994) (TV)

Excellent movie, excellent music

An excellent movie. The relationship between Celliers and Yonoi brought tears almost to my eyes. The depth and feeling of the movie, moved me enormously, especially the final scenes.

The only part I wasn't particularly keen on was of course Bowie as a school boy- that was just strange.

However the movie as a whole was a supremely good one, and Bowie excelled himself. I'm not a huge fan of his movies, but here, he became an actor.

I saw it at Christmas, and it probably made it for me- the scenes of eating the flower, 'Merry Christmas' and the final scene between Yonoi and Bowie