WORLD AT WAR, THE, PART 22: JAPAN (TV)
Summary
Part twenty-two of twenty-six in this documentary series chronicling the history of World War II. This installment provides a Japanese perspective on the war. Highlights include the following: in London, V-E Day is celebrated, but Churchill reminds people of the ongoing conflict with Japan in the Pacific; in Tokyo, Prime Minister Gen. Hideki Tojo presides over a solemn commemoration of the one-year anniversary of Japan's attack on the U.S. Fleet at Pearl Harbor; under Tojo's totalitarian military government, the Japanese people are instilled with the belief that their country is invincible -- yet many are surprised at the suddenness of the declaration of war against the United States; throughout Japan, mock air-raid drills heighten collective discipline and foster a false sense of confidence; schoolboys are rigorously trained in the archaic code of the samurai and are taught that it is their honorable duty to die for Emperor Hirohito; Toshikazu Kase considers the educational, religious, and military traditions which factored into molding the fierce, nationalistic Japanese spirit; one veteran recalls the "thousand-stitch band," an amulet presented to departing soldiers by members of the National Defense Women's Organization; on April 18, 1942, Lt. Col. James Doolittle initiates the first aerial raid over Japan's seemingly impenetrable skies; several of Doolittle's pilots are captured and tried -- three are later executed; to feed the mighty Japanese war machine, Japanese women, traditionally relegated to the dual roles of mother and wife, are conscripted into labor in factories and mines; loyalty and patriotism are the key weapons for Japan's war effort, which suffers from a lack of natural resources; the defeat at the Battle of Midway crushes the Imperial Navy; cabinet member Naoki Hoshino talks of the military's denial of the outcome of the conflict; one war correspondent, a first-hand witness of the catastrophe at Midway, describes the military's efforts to censor his reports; excerpts are shown from propaganda films which clearly stress Japanese superiority in the Pacific theater -- in actuality, they are on the brink of defeat; on June 5, 1943, an elaborate state funeral is held for Adm. Isoroku Yamamoto, the mastermind of the attack on Pearl Harbor and a national hero; as Gen. MacArthur's amphibious forces shrink the borders of the Empire, Japan finds itself increasingly vulnerable; Yuzuru Sanematsu, Naval Intelligence commander, recalls the Battle of Saipan, in which the Japanese lost the foremost strategically vital island of their defensive wall; one pilot talks of the sacrifice expected of his squadron -- pilots frequently take off without parachutes and are duty-bound to choose death over capture; the island of Saipan is appropriated as an air base for hundreds of American Superforts; in a desperate effort to stave off an imminent invasion, kamikaze pilots crash their planes into American carriers and warships; the Battle of Okinawa is recollected by several survivors; color footage of aerial raids on industrial targets in Japan is shown; American incendiary bombs level Tokyo and kill one hundred thousand citizens -- but the military command refuses to consider terms of surrender; and as aged veterans, women and children are armed in anticipation of a land invasion, the end of the Empire arrives in an entirely unexpected fashion. Commercials deleted.
Details
- NETWORK: Thames (United Kingdom)
- DATE: April 10, 1974
- RUNNING TIME: 0:50:24
- COLOR/B&W: Color and B&W
- CATALOG ID: T82:0214
- GENRE: Public affairs/Documentaries
- SUBJECT HEADING: International Collection - United Kingdom; Japan - Defenses; Japan - History - 1941-1945; Thames Collection; World War II
- SERIES RUN: Thames (United Kingdom) - TV series, 1973-1974
- COMMERCIALS: N/A
CREDITS
- Jeremy Isaacs … Producer
- Hugh Ragget … Producer, Director
- Noble Frankland … Production (Misc.), Historical Adviser
- Courtney Browne … Writer
- Carl Davis … Music by
- Laurence Olivier … Narrator
- Naoki Hoshino
- Toshikazu Kase
- Yuzuru Sanematsu
- James Doolittle
- Hirohito, Emperor of Japan
- Douglas MacArthur
- Hideki Tojo
- Isoroku Yamamoto