The Emperors Naked Army Marches On- Dir. by Kazuo Hara

                                                                       
                                                      

Early this month, I was fortunate to be able to attend the Browning Cinema's presentation of Hara's film The Emperors Naked Army Marches On. Despite believing it to be a culturally significant and a well crafted film, the film itself is simply difficult to watch. Its core analysis of the extreme living conditions for soldiers in New Guinea is overshadowed by Kenzo Okuzaki and his god "given" pursuit of justice. Okuzaki himself seems to serve as a snake oil salesman, beating men in their own homes in his god acknowledged pursuit of justice, and possible one of the greatest villains I've seen on the screen- ultimately fleeing for murder charges despite his insistence that he owns up to all of his actions. 

As someone raised with a relatively cursory education surrounding the pacific theater in WWII,the film highlights a number of the lesser known aspects of Japanese society, including the extreme actions taken by the Japanese army in order to survive as well as Japan's general reverence to the Emperor of the Japan before and after the war. The film also serves as an interesting introduction into Japan's political structure with its depiction of campaigning utilizing a moving vehicle, loose adherence to Confucian ideals like filial piety, and general avoidance of outright confrontation. 

                       

The Emperors Naked Army Marches On serves an interesting documentary depicting the avoidance of WWII in the modern era as well as Japanese society during the technology boom of the 1980s. While I am happy I watched it and believe it is important to better understand Japan as well as World War II, I caution those who have yet to watch it for it is not a lighthearted tale to be viewed at ones leisure.

                           

Samurai Gourmet: Netflix

                         

This week I dove into an interesting cross between a food documentary and fantasy series in the form of Netflix's Samurai Gourmet. The show follows the rebirth of Takeshi Kasumi, a recently retired salary man who embodies the spirit of a samurai in his pursuit of foods and actions outside of his comfort zone. The series serves as a cross between a food documentary and a period piece that depicts the lifestyle and actions of food across the two different time periods: that of the Edo period as well as the modern representation. 

 Because of the shows nature, the film offers a unique insight into some of the more simple aspects of Japanese society and food etiquette. We see the depiction of the traditional Washoku, Japanese food sets, as well as the social expectations surrounding salary men. Through the episodes, we see Takeshi embody the samurai spirit to perform actions outside of his comfort, utilizing the figures masculine nature to do so. In this way, Takeshi is able to take part in different foods and beverages that he was unable to during his time as a salary man, like beer on a weekday.

                                 

Through the supporting characters of the show, we also see a look into the common actions of Japan's society- who lack the spirit of the samurai to change their actions. In this way, we affirm the high cash based society that Japan is known for, the heavy focus of public transit systems like the train to get to and from work, as well as the great hospitality displayed by the hosts and chefs in the preparation and presentation of a meal.  All in all, I found the shows premise to be interesting and a unique perspective compared other show that look into the lives of individual customers like Midnight Diner.