Imperador

In the fine biographical movie MacArthur which starred Gregory Peck as the controversial general only a small part was devoted to the years as Supreme Commander Allied Powers in charge of the occupation of Japan. Even liberal historians give Douglas MacArthur credit for the vast and peaceful societal change that our occupation of Japan post World War II wrought. We haven't been that successful since. And only a part of that part of the movie concerned the decision about the Emperor's fate.

Emperor concerns those fateful first days of the occupation when MacArthur made the decision not to try the Emperor or members of the royal family as war criminals. Doing the investigation on MacArthur's behalf was General Bonner Fellers who was an army intelligence officer with a background in Japanese language and culture. Matthew Fox is General Fellers and he's got another mission for himself, to find an exchange student from Japan from his youth and whom he knew up to the declaration of war between the USA and Japan.

Tommy Lee Jones plays MacArthur and while he doesn't have that majestic cultured voice that MacArthur had, he still creates a good impression of the imperious general who had a dislike of civil authority. In fact traces of the behavior that got him sacked by Harry Truman during the Korean War are shown. In this case though MacArthur with help of Fellers and his own knowledge of the Asian scene had the right instincts.

The Emperor of Japan centuries ago was a true ruler and over the centuries evolved into a constitutional monarch. But not the same as that Windsor family that reigns in the United Kingdom. The Japanese Shinto religion conferred divine status, the original emperor one Jimmu Tenno is supposed to be descended from the sun god. Japan's wars and foreign policy were done in his name, still are to some extent. A greater decision from Hirohito's part came when he said that he and his family were not divine.

Not covered in this film was the fact that Hirohito had some brothers, at least one of them would have been a more than willing tool of the army and navy chiefs who conducted Japan's war. He faced until the surrender the distinct possibility of being overthrown himself by one of his siblings.

Matthew Fox and Tommy Lee Jones and the Japanese cast are perfectly cast in their roles and I recommend this film as good entertainment and for those with an interest in the Far East.

This nice movie tells a fictionalized account based on the actual life story of US Army Brigadier General Bonner Frank Fellers who served under General Douglas MacArthur . On the staff of General Douglas MacArthur (Tommy lee Jones), the de facto ruler of Japan as Supreme Commander of the occupying forces, a leading Japanese expert, General Bonner Fellers (Matthew Fox) is charged with reaching a decision of historical importance: should Emperor Hirohito be tried and hanged as a war criminal? Interwoven is the story of Fellers' love affair with Aya (Eriko Hatsune), a Japanese exchange student he had met years previously in the U.S. Memories of Aya and his quest to find her in the ravaged post-war landscape help Fellers to discover both his wisdom and his humanity and enable him to come to the momentous decision that changed the course of history and the future of two nations.

This is a good drama war with emotion , suspense , thrills , culture clashes , and historical events . The picture contains a marvelous story of love and understanding set amidst the tensions and uncertainties of the days immediately following the Japanese surrender at the end of World War II. Excellent cast gives good acting as Fox who plays Bonner Fellers, a general who's sent to Japan to decide if Emperor Hirohito will be hanged for war crimes ; starring alongside him is Eriko Hatsune as Aya Shimada, a woman Fellers romanced years earlier, and Tommy Lee Jones as legendary Us military figure General Douglas MacArthur. The movie displays a colorful as well as adequate photography by Stuart Dryburgh . Emotive and evocative musical score by Alex Heffes . The flick was professionally directed by Peter Webber (Hannibal , The girl with a pearl earring). This true life story was one worthy of big-screen treatment .

The picture is well based on true events , these are the followings : After the war, Fellers played a major role in the occupation of Japan. Among his duties was liaison between HQ and the Imperial Household. Soon after occupation began, General Fellers wrote several influential memoranda concerning why it would be advantageous for the occupation, reconstruction of Japan, and U.S. long range interests to keep the Emperor in place if he was not clearly responsible for war crimes. He met with the major defendants of the Tokyo tribunal. In their research and analysis of events and considerable controversy about the time period, according to historians Herbert Bix and John W. Dower, Fellers—under an assignment by the code name "Operation Blacklist"—allowed them to coordinate their stories to exonerate Emperor Hirohito and all members of his family. This was at the direction of MacArthur, now head of SCAP, who had decided that there was to be no criminal prosecution of the Emperor and his family. He will question the accused Class -A War Criminals such as Wartime Prime Minister Hideki Tojo, Former Prime Minister Konoe, and Koichi Kido while confronting prejudice from a resentful populace and other American soldiers. General Fellers, who came from a Religious Society of Friends family (commonly known as Quakers) and attended the Quaker-affiliated Earlham College, was instrumental in the selection of Elizabeth Vining, an American Quaker educator, as tutor to the Emperor's children. Ms. Vining was followed after 4 years by another Quaker educator, Esther Rhoads.In 1971, Emperor Hirohito conferred on Fellers the Second Order of the Sacred Treasure "in recognition of your long-standing contribution to promoting friendship between Japan and the United States."

"This country is starving and teetering on the edge of total collapse. It wouldn't take much for the resentment to ignite into revolt and the fate of the emperor could be just the spark." After the Japanese surrender ends WWII the US Government wants to know who was behind the bombing of Pearl Harbor. General Douglas MacArthur (Jones) charges General Bonner Fellers (Fox) with an important mission. Fellers is to decide if Emperor Hirohito should be charged as a war criminal and hung. To make matters even harder Fellers is also searching for his lost love in the midst of the war ravaged country. Being a history buff I was really looking forward to seeing this movie. This movie really shows the tense decision Fellers was charged with, his conclusion really will decide the fate of an entire country as well as relations between the US and Japan. The movie shows the lengths people will go to protect someone they revere as a God and how close the country came to a completely different future. I really enjoyed this being a history buff but I do have to say for people that aren't as interested in this stuff you may find it a little slow. Overall, a very tense look at one of the most important days of post war Japan. I give it a B+.

This film tells a fascinating story in fine style, but it is difficult to see how anyone thought it was big screen material. Its box office takings were predictably low and it was in theatres so briefly that I had to catch it on DVD which was certainly a worthwhile endeavour.

In 1945, General Douglas MacArthur was made Supreme Commander in American- occupied Japan and one of his first and most momentous decisions was whether or not to execute Emperor Hirohito as a war criminal. For most Americans, there was no debate: Hirohito was the man who endorsed the infamous attack on Pearl Harbor. But, whether or not he backed the war, a case could be made that he was crucially instrumental in bringing about the peace by ordering the Japanese to surrender. Furthermore the hanging of the emperor - still revered by most Japanese as a deity - could well lead to an explosion of violence that would make the occupation by the Americans and the revival of the shattered nation immensely more difficult.

MacArthur commissioned Brigadier General Bonner Fellers to make a study of the emperor's complicity and make a recommendation on execution. Fellers was someone who knew the Japanese well and had considerable respect for their ancient culture. Indeed, before the war, he had fallen in love with a Japanese woman studying in the United States and, even after the war, was anxious to see her again.

This amazing story is told respectfully by British director Peter Webber and writers Brazilian Vera Blasi and American David Klass, drawing on Shiro Okamoto's book "His Majesty's Salvation", in a film that even-handedly represents Japanese perspectives of the time. The acting is first-rate with Matthew Fox (best-known for the TV series "Lost") giving a sensitive performance as Fellers and Tommy Lee Jones perfectly cast as the swaggering MacArthur. Many excellent Japanese actors contribute, notably the lovely Eriko Hatsune as Fellers' girlfriend. Shot on locations in both New Zealand and Japan, high production values make this an admirable viewing experience.

The movie lacks the fast-paced action that many expect from a visit to the cinema and arguably it is overly sympathetic to the Japanese position and somewhat saccharine in its treatment of the romance, but it is a real pleasure to see a work that tells a little- known story of such consequence so well.

Matthew Fox and Tommy Lee Jones play polarising American WW2 army generals to a tee in Emperor, the compellingly true story of the aftermath of the war in Japan, and the concerted US effort to compile enough evidence to convict Japanese Emperor Hirohito of war crimes. Trained on a seldom-acknowledged aspect of mankind's greatest battle, Emperor infuses a grand story with intimate relationships, making for a superb addition to the voluminous library of war on film.

While Tommy Lee Jones relishes in playing every Tommy Lee Jones character ever (stealing all the best lines in the process) as the hard-nosed but cunning General MacArthur, Fox delivers a more grounded and arresting performance as Bonner Fellers, a man torn between his moral obligations and his duty to the army, and to an American public crying out for blood.

Director Peter Webber infuses a romantic subplot with Fellers' Japanese girlfriend Aya (Eriko Hatsune) neatly, filling a role but never interjecting into a story that, quite frankly, is underscored by the power of men post-war. When MacArthur finally comes face-to-face with the Emperor after an excruciating build-up, the scene's emotional force and intense interplay perfectly resonate the best attributes of this vastly underrated drama.

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