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Xinyun: Question 3

For me one of the most poignant scenes is when the imperial soldiers and generals bowed to Katasumoto. I felt a wave of grieve and immense sadness, yet also chilling as I watched the scene u fold before me. I believe one of the intended message was to convey the devastation with war. The way this scene was filmed, a panning birds' eyes view shot, showed us the tragic scene left behind by war. Corpses of both samurai and imperial soldiers, fire and smoke everywhere. The directors made a right choice of decision by not focusing on any one character's face, choosing to pane around and show almost everyone. So many had sacrificed their life, devoted to their respective believes. While their lives were not necessary in vain, to see so many dead because of a disagreement between parties is something I believe we all never want to see. The imperial soldiers too were mourning for the loss of their fellow comrades. Even while the imperial army won, they still loss thousands of men, friends and comrades.  "Are we prepared to face the consequence, the price to be paid if we choose to go to war?" This scene serves as a constant reminder that war is essentially death; is war really necessary?

Another scene that was poignant tonne was when Algren presents the Emperor with Katsumoto's sword. While Katsumoto was died, the samurai clan ended, the spirit carried by the samurai still remains. When Algren presents the Emperor the sword, it served as a remainder of what the Japanese spirit was, and what the samurai's cause was. It is then we all see that the even the Emperor in midst of modernisation and industrialisation had seemingly forgotten the true Japanese spirit. It was as if katsumoto was answering the Emperor's question from earlier, when asked what he should do as the ruler. The Emperor was meek, and oppressed by his general Omura. Yet in the instance when he received the sword, he found the answer he was seeking, and who he wanted to be. He was unafraid to speak his mind, and assert his authority; something rarely shown throughout the movie. In my opinion, the directors wish to remind us that through the progress and changes in our society and nation, we should never forget our past. The past could often be an excellent teacher and guide, and in this case the Emperor discovered the answer he was seeking all the time.

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Q3.

One of the most memorable scene was the battle in the fog, where the whole story develops. The first battle in the fog strongly shows the inadequacy of the new Japanese Imperial Army and the fearlessness of the Samurai Clan. The story was based off the early years of the meiji restoration when Japan was undergoing a change in their country to a more modernized one to fit the world’s economy. The loss that the Japanese Imperial Army experienced clearly depicts the struggles that a new emerging modernized Japan was facing, from a previously conservative country to one that was seeking a stronger and more independent society. It also emphasises the clash in ideals between the different people who wanted newer ways and those who wanted to preserve the old cultures of olden Japan.

The second memorable scene has to be the last battle where the samurai clan fell to the Imperial Army. The never dying spirit of the Samurais was strongly portrayed in the last battle, where they were willing to fight till the end with glory for their purpose. Their loss was inevitable as the new Japanese Imperial Army received much assistance from the fire arms which led to the victory of the Army. The way the film was choreographed strongly depicted the struggles to keep the traditional Japanese culture intact in the new modernizing country and that the loss of that culture will lose out to the ever changing and ever improving world out there. The old ways will lose its traditions, just like how the samurai clan was entirely wiped out by the Imperial army.

The two scenes mentioned above were extremely poignant in the film as it was very touching and clearly depicted the problems that the new modernising Japan was experiencing during the Meiji Restoration, reaching out effectively to the Japanese and western audience. Other than depicting the struggles that the new Japanese era was facing, the film was well choreographed to emphasise on the love that the Japanese, the emperor and its people, and the Samurais had for Japan. Both the Imperial Army and the Samurai fought for what they thought would be the best for their country, one fighting for the preservation of its traditional cultures, and the other fighting for the country's need to westernize to grow into a stronger nation.

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Q2) When portraying history in the form of films, it is important for viewers to take note that not everything is historically accurate and a lot of the plot could be dramatised or over exaggerated in order to make the film more interesting. To understand more about the main important events, scriptwriters likely has to do their own research or get into contact with a historian. However, in order to attract viewers, it would be difficult for the director/scriptwriter to compromise on the plot to present more historically accurate information. The film would also force us to take the perspective of the protagonist, presenting only one-side of the event. For example, the protagonist Nathan takes the side of the samurais and experiences spiritual healing as he lives with them as their captive, and all the practices of the samurai are portrayed positively, and the samurai good and pure. However, I feel like this is just an idealistic portrayal of the samurais as the samurais were often said to be tyrannical and cruel throughout Japanese history. Even if there were some samurais out there who really believed in the same things and were good people as shown in the movie, in reality there were many who wanted to retain the samurai system so that they could keep their power and status and remain superior over the people.

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Q3. The scene that was most poignant for me was the part where Algren was captured by the samurais’ and when he was on the way back to the samurais viallge, he saw the Japanese commander chopping off his own head willingly. This was something that he did not understand at first.

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Q1. I find the portrayal of the Emperor of Japan in the film very intriguing. Although he is the head of the country, in the film we can see that the economic development and growth of the country is largely driven by a wealthy Japanese business man - Omura. Along with the economic development, also comes military development. Throughout the film, there are hints that the Emperor does not fully support Omura's cause, as his teacher was Katsumoto - thus making him feel guilty for supporting Omura.

The value of one's self-identity is portrayed through the Emperor's attitude, and it is the Emperor's skepticism towards the justification of Omura's actions which also makes me question whether westernisation is as glorious as it was portrayed to be. In the film, westernisation seems to mean death and destruction. Rather, the "savage" ways of the Samurai are driven by the focus on peace, harmony and unity.

The Emperor in the film believes that there is more to a nation than it's wealth. This to me challenges what the whole Meiji Restoration. According to what I know of the Meiji Restoration was the period where some Japanese mindsets were altered, where materialism was a huge part of the Japanese culture (modeled after the west). However, in the film, by showing that the Emperor values his history more than unscrupulous means of attaining wealth, it seems to challenge my historical knowledge.

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Casting historical events in films can prove to be very challenging, especially if there is a lack of comprehension in accurate historical knowledge of the event. Hence, the director often has to work with a historian to delve deeper into the event to ensure that the film is portrayed as closely accurate to the original event as possible. However, the articulation of the movieis leans more towards one party, while putting down the other party. This makes the viewer perceive the movie from a biased viewpoint, and they are hence unable to accurately view the event as they subconsciously take the viewpoint of the protagonist, who belongs to one side in a movie that takes a first person narrative, hence limiting their mindset as to to take whose side. Moreover, there could be certain biases and errors in the presentation of the event. For instance, there were certain scenes where the samurai wore armors, and there was even a scene where Taka helped Algren put on an armor, for the viewer’s entertainment. In reality, the Samurai armor had been abandoned simply because it didn’t stop bullets and Saigo Takamori, the real life leader Katsumoto is based on, actually wore his Imperial officer’s uniform for many of the engagements of the rebellion. It can be concluded that the accuracy of certain parts of the portrayal of the event was sacrificed for the entertainment of the viewer. While the movie was indeed made not to be extremely correct factually, I do not think that there is more entertainment than history although there is a certain extent of humor in the film, as the portrayal of history is afterall still the main point of the movie.

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By casting historical events through films, there is a tendency for the audience to take sides, judging from who the protaganist is. It is difficult to understand the real intentions behind the war objectively. In this film, it is natural for the audience to sympathise with the samurais because they were being portrayed as good people who simply wanted to preserve their tradition while the imperial soldiers were portrayed as heartless, oppressive, manipulative. In reality, this wasn't exactly the case. The Meiji Restoration did in fact help Japan in terms of military and economy and the imperial soldiers were not necessarily as evil as portrayed. The point of movies is definitely to provide some sort of entertainment so I feel like movies can never really show the real situation back then from different perspectives which is critical for us to truly understand the history, process and implications of the Meiji Restoration. There are many examples of this movie providing entertainment such as when the samurais were being attacked throughout which evoked much feelings from audience, resulting in us watching the movie with some subconscious expectations. Or the unwanted romance between Taka and Algren. Or the funny conversations between Katsumoto and Algren. There are many things to constantly keep us interested in the story plot rather than the history. Overall, I think this movie is well-filmed but does not really do justice to the history of Japan because it limits the audience's perception of the history, causing them to have a shallow understanding of how the people and the situation was like then.

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Q3) I feel that one of the scenes that was most poignant for me would be the part where Algren apologises to Taka and her family for killing her husband, and eventually she forgives him and takes care of him. She also handles him with trust and cares for him, treating him as though he was part of the family. This scene was poignant as war and death are hurtful topics to discuss, especially between the two opposing parties. When he apologises and she forgives him, it showcases her compromise and her acceptance of her past enemy.

Another scene which I felt was poignant would be during the final battle, where the samurais fought for their people and to preserve their roots. It was a gruesome scene and it was terrifying to watch. It was clearly evident that the other party were more advanced with guns and machines, and they were the clear winner. However, the samurais determination to keep pushing on and go against their enemy till the very end shows their strength and their loyalty to the country and people. They are willing to sacrifice their life for the country. The end of the battle was devastating to watch as Katsumoto took his own life. It was also horrying to see the gruesome outcome of the war. It also taught me that war could solve conflicts as in the end, when handed over Katsumoto’s sword, the Emporer Meiji changed his mind and decided to turn down the treaty. The war showcases the people’s love for their country and their determination to keep their roots and their refusal to be influenced by the Westerners.

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Choose ONE of the following questions for your film critique. Please provide specific examples from the film when making references.

1. Select a character in the film. Discuss the values that the character embodies and how that has shaped your views of the historical event.

2. Discuss the challenges in casting historical events through films. Is there more entertainment than there is History when using film as portrayal of the past?

3. Select TWO scenes in the film that were most poignant for you. Discuss how the director choreographed these scenes to convey the intended message to the audience.

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Choose ONE of the following questions for your film critique. Please provide specific examples from the film when making references.

1. Select a character in the film. Discuss the values that the character embodies and how that has shaped your views of the historical event.

2. Discuss the challenges in casting historical events through films. Is there more entertainment than there is History when using film as portrayal of the past?

3. Select TWO scenes in the film that were most poignant for you. Discuss how the director choreographed these scenes to convey the intended message to the audience.

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Q3) One of the scenes that was most poignant for me was when the son of Taka ran to get his sword as a n attempt to protect and save his Mother and Algren. He felt a sense of responsibility and he should not be just hiding there. However, he could have been killed had Algren not save him in time. His physical strength may not be compatible with his strong will to protect his family members. This scene conveyed to the audience the cruel realities of war and that children who were meant to enjoy childhood, has lost their naivety and innocence to war. They were exposed to the bloodshed and loss of loved ones through war. They have come to understand they needed to be strong to protect their family. It is sad that the children are exposed to these at such a young age. The fear they felt at the moment where they were so close to death is unthinkable for an adult, not to say a young child.

The scene where Katsumoto commited suicide was also very poignant for me. His determination had touched even his enemy, causing them to not only cease fire but also to even bow to him. His way of death has shown much more about the Japanese culture. Their values that they held, the faith and loyalty to their emperor. They are unafraid of death, but they, are afraid of an unhonourable one. They are willing to sacrifice their lives just to make the emperor change his decisions. Though this did not guarantee that the emperor would change to stand up for his people and not stay as a puppet, they were willing to give it a try. Katsumoto committed everything, even his life, to make the emperor hear his voice. Japanese culture is something that cannot be understood just by the books. We need to feel, hear and see. Their ways of life, their values and their beliefs can only be understood if we see life the way they see it. In our eyes, their sacrifice may seem meaningless to us, but the Japanese culture and heir self-sacrificial spirit brings meaning to it. By understanding this, we will know why Japanese soldiers were willing to sacrifice their lives anytime during world war. This was what made them such a powerful force -a ferocious force unafraid of death. They had many suicide squads that gave up their lives to exchange for the victory and honour of their country. Their culture has made them put honour before anything else and this set them apart from other forces.