The Emperor's Naked Army Marches On

This documentary tells the story of Kenzo Okusaki, a hugely out of the norm, 62 year old man from Japan, that decides to spend all of his time and energy investigating what happened to several of the soldiers in his unit that were executed and cannibalized 23 days after the war was over in New Guinea. Denied by both government and the people involved, Kenzo, 40 years after returning from New Guinea makes this into his one cause, wanting to bring justice to a concealed part of history. In doing so, he shun no means. From the opening scene, we follow Kenzo in his green wagon, beginning with conducting a public memorial service to console the victims who perished for the emperor Hirohito during the Pacific War. He continues his journey with abruptly visit people involved investigating the mysterious death of the soldiers. If they refuse to speak, Kenzo threatens to beat them up- and he means it! Violence is something he means, can be justified if the result is good. All of them tell a different story witch make it a bit hard to understand what really happened but also shows the complexity of truth and memory. In the end, Kenzo opens fire and an Ex-officers son is seriously wounded. Kenzo is arrested for attempted murder and spends the last years of his life in prison in Hiroshima. Kenzo ultimately holds the emperor Hirohito responsible for the deaths of the soldiers. However, by making people recognize the crime and bring it up to the surface, he hopes to be able to prevent war and contribute to a better future and a more responsible mankind. Regardless if he achieves justice, Kenzo's story has been told, a story that probably never would have been told, acknowledged and talked about today. That Kenzo would be a better human being than all of the rest, may in the beginning have sounded as a naively thing to say about yourself, but in the end- he may have a point.

I was very open minded going into this film, as it was a Japanese documentary, and I have never experienced such a thing. While the beginning started out a bit slow, it quickly caught my attention. The main character had one goal- to get the truth out of the soldiers who shot and killed their own men. I found it quite humorous at one point, when he would walk into their homes, say sorry for intruding, then insist that he will beat them up if they do not reveal the truth. His goal was simple. He had already been arrested and sentenced to time in the past, so he was not scared of this notion. What's even more funny is the camera man did not even do anything when the fighting's were going on, he insisted on continuing to shoot. This movie kept me on the edge of my seat for many parts of it, and some parts actually made me feel sorry for those he was beating up ( I.e the old man who just had surgery.) He had a mission, and certainly carried it out. Another funny part was when he used impersonators to help lure the people into giving him answers, so in a sense he was a hypacrit himself. He ends up spending time in jail at the end, though his story shall live on. Great overall film.

I watched this film for a modern Japanese narrative class, but would definitely recommend it to anyone else. The copy I had made it hard to read the subtitles sometimes, but it was usually pretty obvious what was going on, because at that point Okuzaki Kenzo was usually beating somebody up for not telling him the truth.

It is sometimes hard to believe that this film is a documentary, because you want it to be fiction. It is not easy to watch, but whole-heartedly worth it, because even though it forces you to think about a lot of uncomfortable things, WWII was a very uncomfortable time, so it's rather appropriate, that way.

This is the story of Kenzo Okuzai a very strange man who is haunted by what happened back in New Guinea during the Second World War. What happened during the war was that while all the men were starving the officers had several soldiers executed on trumped up charges so that they could be used for food. This is a documentary about his long lonely crusade to put the souls of the dead to rest (ie.to give himself some peace of mind).

This is a very in your face film. Okuzai drives a car with a loudspeaker on the top and is covered with what I can only assume is an explanation of his cause. He challenges authority at every turn (he went to prison for shooting ball bearings at the Emperor... and murder) and does what ever he can to get his point across. Its makes you laugh and it makes you cringe (a case in point in the opening wedding ceremony where he gives a speech that is not to be believed, which is funny for what it says, but cringe inducing for when he says it). Okuzai forces you to consider how far would you go to correct a wrong that happened even 40 years before.

Watching the movie I was forced to reflect not only what it may have been like in the jungles during the war and what I would do to survive. What is the moral obligations we should follow when we are near death and trying to stay alive? The film also forces you to think about the role of a camera in the proceedings. We are with Kenzo Okuzai all along his odd trip as he attempts to comfort the families of the dead and as he confronts (and assaults) the officers who ordered the executions. There is no doubt that he is aware he is being filmed, so does that make him more or less confrontational? Is his behavior more or less genuine than it would be had the camera not been there? Its a tough call and as you watch it you really do have to reflect on what is the role of a film crew in filming actual events? Can we trust the actions of those being filmed? Its all something to think about.

If you get the chance see this film. Its an interesting look at a very odd man. I'm not sure that I liked Okuzai (which is the problem with the movie, he isn't really likable), but he did force me to think about life and film in several new ways.

An uncomfortable but very engaging documentary, The Emperor's Naked Army Marches On (great title) follows a man named Kenzo Okuzaki who fought in WW2, deeply regrets his past, and uses extreme and confrontational methods to try and seek redemption, as well as expose higher-ups in the army who he believes committed some very confronting war crimes.

His motives start sympathetic, but as it goes on, it becomes more and more apparent that he's a deeply disturbed and often quite frightening individual. Perhaps a lot of it stems from the trauma of fighting in WW2, but it's hard to know for certain.

He makes for a very compelling central figure, and he's a big reason the film is so provocative and troubling to watch. Different viewers may feel different things of course, but I found supporting his cause but not all of his methods to make this something of an emotional/ethical roller coaster to watch.

I know it's the kind of movie that will stick with me, and I got a similar feeling from it that I got from 2012's The Act Of Killing. Each confronts difficult subject matter in a unique way, and each tells their stories and conveys themes without using voiceover narration or archive footage of the horrifying events discussed (sometimes, what you imagine is more horrifying).

I would rate this higher, but the one thing that holds it back a little is the final five minutes. There's a ton of dramatic developments that happen near the end of this story, but they're mostly conveyed in title cards right before the end credits roll, and it feels very abrupt. You still understand where Okuzaki's personal mission leads to, but you don't really feel the impact in the same way you feel the events that came before, which is a slight shame.

Other than that, this is a pretty great documentary- keeps you engaged and glued to the screen, but challenges you when it comes to the ideas and themes it presents.