I have a minor obsession with films released in the year of my birth, 1968. The other day, I was googling something randomly and came across a 1968 film called Rengo Kantai Shirei Chokan, or Isoroku Yamamoto in English, about the Japanese admiral who commanded the Japanese forces during WWII. Let’s learn about this film, and what it’s been like being an American living in Japan!
1968 was a great year for movies, with several important films released that year. 2001: A Space Odyssey. The OG Planet of the Apes. Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. Once Upon a Time in the West. The first modern zombie movie Night of the Living Dead. My favorite Godzilla movie, Destroy All Monsters. And if you want to see a young Jane Fonda naked, Barbarella.
And last night I watched another film from 1968, Isoroku Yamamoto, a major war film from Toho about the life of the commander of the Imperial Japanese Navy. It was only by random chance that I was watching it the day before Pearl Harbor Day, but it seemed like something I should write a blog post about.
What It’s Like Being an American Living in a Former “Enemy” Country
WWII’s history has always fascinated me. Living in Japan, however, has been a chance to study that period of history from a new perspective. Over the years, there have been some interesting moments too. Like the time when I was sitting in a crowded doctor’s office and the TV news announced that Enola Gay commander Paul Tibbits had died. That made for an uncomfortable atmosphere.
Japanese people are always polite when discussing the war, but rarely give strong opinions to Americans like me. This is one reason I was interested to see them speaking vocally back during the “Barbenheimer” debacle. People of my mother-in-law’s generation positively adore Douglas MacArthur for treating Japan with dignity during the Allied Occupation, and I’ve often been told, “It was good that Japan lost the war, and MacArthur saved Japan from itself.”
Since my kids were part of both countries, I raised them with an awareness of this dual history. I took them to all the important historical places related to the war, including the Pearl Harbor National Memorial, Hiroshima, and the amazing carrier Intrepid in New York City. I would also take them to visit their uncle Kumakichi every year on New Year’s Day. He fought on the battleship Ise, which was converted to a half-carrier after the battle of Midway. We were the only ones in the family who loved to hear his war stories. I’ve got a Nendoroid of Ise on my desk in memory of him.
It’s interesting to see how the ships and lore of WWII have been woven into modern pop culture, present in everything from Strike Witches and Kantai Collection to Azur Lane and even the Sengoku Rance hentai game series. Admiral Yamamoto is a playable character in many modern games, including World of Warships.
The 1968 Isoroku Yamamoto Film
The 1968 film Isoroku Yamamoto is (obviously) about the life of the man who commanded Japan’s forces during the first 16 months of the war, until he was shot down during Operation Vengence. It stars Toshiro Mifune in the title role. The film was the second in a series of Japan-made war films called “Japan’s Longest Day.”
The main events of the film are:
- A cute opening scene in which Isoroku visits his family’s grave and does a handstand inside a boat to win a bet with a boat pilot.
- Yamamoto takes command of the IJN Pacific Fleet. His superiors overrule his strong opposition to the Pearl Harbor attack.
- The attack on Pearl Harbor commences.
- The Japanese suffer a major defeat at Midway, losing four carriers. The film covers the misinformation the IJN spread to their own forces.
- Isoroku writes haiku poems between scenes and gets called 閣下 kakka (“your excellency”) by his soldiers a lot.
- Some island fighting scenes are depicted. Isoroku meets the son of the boat pilot from the beginning of the movie.
- The Americans break the Japanese codes, and then Yamamoto is shot down. The film goes out of its way to imply that Yamamoto died because he was always punctual.
Isoroku Yamamoto was a fine movie, and featured a great performance by Toshiro Mifune.
The Special Effects Were Great to Watch
When I got into computers and programming, I had a specific goal: to make a software distribution company and sell fun games. That dream came true — though not in the way I intended at the age of 14 — through J-List’s sister company JAST USA. Before this, my life’s goal was to emulate my hero at the time, John Dykstra, the man most responsible for the special effects in Star Wars. I was the biggest special effects nerd in the world.
The special effects in Isoroku Yamamoto are a joy to watch, featuring 156 miniature ships. The great Eiji Tsuburaya, who brought us Godzilla and Ultraman, created them. The effects were significantly better and more detailed than the average monster movie of the era, though of course the special effects of Tora! Tora! Tora! just two years later would far surpass this film. That’s a great film to watch if you’re into the War in the Pacific.
Thanks for reading this post about the 1968 film Isoroku Yamamoto and what it’s been like being an American living in Japan. Got any comments or questions? Post them below!
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