He states in the letter that if he finishes burying all the fallen soldiers' bodies, then he may return to Japan. "You're a frat boy, you may enjoy some of my stories". Kon Ichikawa crafts a war film unlike any other film about war. The Burmese Harp His ideals challenged by life as a conscript in war-time Japan's military, a pacifist faces ever greater tests in his fight for survival. I scurried to the far back to make sure that I could secure a seat by myself and far away from these strangers.My efforts were in vain because one of them spotted my fraternity letters and found it necessary to try and sit next to me. The Burmese Harp - Rent Movies and TV Shows on DVD and Blu-ray. [5] Professor Ronald Green argues that Mizushima's mission as a monk to bury Japanese soldiers is a pilgrimage, in which his mounds resemble Buddhist stupas, and his practice of saluting the graves is reminiscent of Buddhist rituals at stupas. The Burmese Harp saved the day.Little did I know that this movie would not only save me from two hours of annoyance, but it would also be an extremely rewarding viewing experience. The remake was a major financial success and was the number one Japanese film on the domestic market in 1985. Sweet Home! [2] Ichikawa likened his desire to make the film to "a call from the heavens". One day, Mizushima steals the monk's robe and shaves his head so that he will not be spotted as a soldier. It was first published in 1946 and was the basis of two films by Kon Ichikawa – one released in 1956 and a color remake in 1985. The film was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film of 1956. Loading. [5], Buddhism is a major theme in the film, with a monk saying "Burma is Buddha's country. His playing is also used as a way to raise moral in the lonely mountains of Burma. A beautiful and moving film, Biruma no Tategoto (The Burmese Harp) is a terrific work by Mr. Ichikawa. The film was among the first to show the losses of the war from a Japanese soldier's perspective. He decides to ask for more time from the British, but when he creates a surrender flag, the others take it the wrong way and believe he is surrendering for them. Based on a children's novel of the same name written by Michio Takeyama, it tells the story of Japanese soldiers who fought in the Burma Campaign during World War II. The film was among the first to sho… The head of a Japanese theatre troupe returns to a small coastal town where he left a son who thinks he is his uncle, and tries to make up for the lost time, but his current mistress grows jealous. [3], Ichikawa met with Takeyama to discuss the story, and was surprised when Takeyama revealed he had never been to Burma, having fought in China during the war. The Burmese Harp was originally intended as a color film. In 1985, Ichikawa remade The Burmese Harp in color with a new cast, and the remake was a major box office success, becoming the number one Japanese film on the domestic market in 1985 and the second largest Japanese box office hit up to that time. It is a beautiful instrument that compliments the smooth visuals.The story is also vividly entertaining in is simplicity. [8] Shots of full moons invoke Buddhist symbols of awakening. Shôji Yasui, Rentaro Mikuni, … Set against the final days of World War II, The Burmese Harp portrays the experiences of a group of exhausted, war-scarred Japanese soldiers as they prepare to return to Japan. You should borrow it sometime... Get a sneak peek of the new version of this page. Title: Private Mizushima, a Japanese soldier, becomes the harp (or saung) player of Captain Inouye's group, composed of soldiers who fight and sing to raise morale in the World War II Burma Campaign. Inouye's men learn that the war has ended with the Japanese surrender, and so they surrender to the British. 115m/B VHS, DVD. Kon Ichikawa’s deeply humane, spiritually resonant masterpiece The Burmese Harp is routinely but reductionistically described as “pacifist” or “anti-war,” terms also applied to his subsequent Fires on the Plain. Chronological exploits of Iwao Enokizu, a murderous thief on the run. He is traumatized and dedicates his life to giving them a proper burial.The Burmese Harp is the first film by Kon Ichikawa to be seen outside of Japan. At a camp, a British captain asks Mizushima to talk down a group of soldiers who are still fighting on a mountain. He is unable however to rejoin his brothers-in-arms. [15] In 1996, Kevin Thomas of The Los Angeles Times hailed it as "one of the great anti-war films". The Burmese Harp, just as the titular instrument suggests songs without filling them out, is a slight film that suggests the heavy human toll of war without actually presenting it. After becoming separated from his platoon, a Japanese soldier dons a Buddhist monk's robe and tends to the bodies of the many war casualties strewn across the countryside. They have an old woman villager take it to a monk they suspect is Mizushima in hiding. Based on the novel by Michio Takeyama, The Burmese Harp stars a Japanese platoon stationed in Burma whose choir skills are inspired by their star musician, Private Mizushima (Rentaro Mikuni), who strums his harp to cheer the homesick soldiers. His playing is also used as a way to raise moral in the lonely mountains of Burma. 8 of 12 people found this review helpful. Last Thursday night I was sitting in a tiny Amtrak station in Bloomington, Illinois waiting for my train to take me to my beautiful girlfriend in Chicago. In the closing days of WWII remnants of the Japanese army in Leyte are abandoned by their command and face certain starvation. Trailer. I immediately bought the Criterion DVD. War, though, is the occasion for the central theme, not the theme itself, which is nothing less than the intractable mystery of … It's available to watch. [2] For a screenplay, Ichikawa turned to his wife Natto Wada, who wrote it alone and at a fast pace, but based on her husband's concepts. Captain Inouye tells the men to sing, laugh and clap, to give the British the impression that they are unaware of their presence. Deeply affected by what has happened, he becomes a Buddhist monk, traveling the countryside burying the remains of Japanese soldiers. I am a big fan. garykmcd. They just wanted to return home - though they would find that home hardly existed as they knew it before the war.Yes, I may be in debt to The Burmese Harp for saving me from the incoherent ramblings of a loud and proud party animal, but I also legitimately enjoyed it on almost every level. When they are offered shelter in a village, they eventually realize they are being watched by British and Indian soldiers. He climbs up to the cave and informs their commander that the war has ended and they should surrender. This leads to Mizushima, and his harp, being separated from his fellow soldiers and he is now left to roam the countryside of Burma. Full moon night played by Nay wah.It was composed by a Great Harpist named U Myint Maung. They beat him unconscious and leave him on the floor. The Burmese Harp is a 1956 Japanese film directed by Kon Ichikawa. Director: Kon Ichikawa Toshio Masuda. When the war comes to an end, he is asked by the British to go into the mountains to try and convince a Japanese troop to surrender. Ichikawa also told Shoji Yasui to lose weight to portray the underfed character. It was easy to see that the filmmaker was not interesting in a mass amount of dialogue. [12][14] In 1993, film scholar Audie Bock praised Ichikawa's use of "the Burmese landscape and the eerie power of its Buddhist statuary and architecture to sustain the mood of Mizushima's conversion and the mystification of his Japanese comrades." He agrees to do so and is told by the captain that he has 30 minutes to convince them to surrender. As we walks, he meets a spiritual leader and realizes the devastatingly high amount of Japanese casualties caused by the violence of World War II. The sound of the harp is soothing and easy on the ears. A searing, acclaimed anti-war statement, in Japanese with English subtitles. [1] Its release in English language countries came before the novel was first translated to English. At the mountain, he is almost shot by the hold-out soldiers before they realize he is Japanese. The Burmese Harp was an uplifting and motivational (often sad and disturbing though), meditation on war, suffering, isolation, grief and an almost clinical vision of the traumas and chaos of war. [2], Ichikawa rigorously followed his storyboards in shooting the film. Directed by Kon Ichikawa. Bock also emphasized the friendship between the soldiers. As the troop surrenders to the British and is interred in Mudon prison camp, Mizushima escapes to be faced with not only his imminent death, but also the deaths of … In fact, it seemed like the majority of the communication was presented through song. Based on a children's novel of the same name written by Michio Takeyama, it tells the story of Japanese soldiers who fought in the Burma … [13], The film's initial release was met with positive reviews. Was this review helpful to you? Although he has had no formal training in music, he is a natural talent, arranging pieces for the men and accompanying their singing. Re-made by Ichikawa in 1985. The 16 strings of the Burmese horizontal, arched harp are tuned in pentatonic octaves over a range of two‐and‐a‐half octaves. After the platoon surrenders they are taken in as prisoners of war. Add the first question. This is a great movie and could serve as an outstanding introduction into Japanese, Asian or world cinema. However, Rayns noted the film shows some Japanese soldiers were indeed extremists. As I sitting there, I was joined by a group of stereotypical sorority girls from Illinois State University. Watch Episodes. [18], The novel The Burmese Harp includes a scene with cannibals in the war. Although this is not adapted in the film, Ichikawa explored the topic in his 1959 film Fires on the Plain. A seriously ill schoolteacher becomes dependent on a "miracle" drug that begins to affect his sanity. Based on a children's novel of the same name written by Michio Takeyama, it tells the story of Japanese soldiers who fought in the Burma Campaign during World War II. The Burmese Harp (ビルマの竪琴, Biruma no tategoto), also known as Harp of Burma, is a children's novel by Michio Takeyama. He begins a journey to the camp in Mudon where his comrades were sent. [1] Dr. John Henry Smihula further argued the quote "Burma is Buddha's country" could mean that Japanese imperialism is at the root of the suffering of all characters in the film, as Burma belongs only to Buddha and neither Japan nor Britain. It was the striking subtlety in the visual style that properly denoted the overall theme of the movie.The Burmese Harp is about a Japanese soldier stationed in Burma during the days immediately following the end of World War II. Mizushima begs for them to surrender but they do nothing. A family of four are the sole inhabitants of a small island, where they struggle each day to irrigate their crops. What really makes it stand out is that it was the first example of an anti-World War II statement being made by the Japanese through cinema. Keep track of everything you watch; tell your friends. Eventually, they buy a parrot and teach it to say "Mizushima, let's go back to Japan together". Given only 30 minutes to convince them, Mizushima is unsuccessful - they would rather die with honor - and the British attack. [6] In his 2013 Movie Guide, Leonard Maltin gave the film three and a half stars, calling it an "extraordinary antiwar drama". View production, box office, & company info. The Burmese arched harp, a little known treasure among Asian musical instruments, figures prominently in Burma's classical music tradition. The cinematography is simple and the landscaping of Burma is vast and magnificent looking. A member of the group goes missing after the war, and the soldiers hope to uncover whether their friend survived, and if he is the same person as a Buddhist monkthey see playing a harp. She also gives the captain a letter, that explains that Mizushima has decided not to go back to Japan with them, because he must continue burying the dead while studying as a monk and promoting the peaceful nature of mankind. [22], Ichikawa remade The Burmese Harp in 1985, starring Kiichi Nakai and Kōji Ishizaka. Music, whether instrumental or vocal, plays a major role in the film. [13] That year, film critic Tony Rayns called it the "first real landmark in his career". 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