Shuto
Purple Belt
I just watched Letters from Iwo Jima and I highly recommend it for those interested in historical drama. The story follows a Japanese draftee's experience defending the island of Iwo Jima during WWII. It not only provides historical background of the fighting but it gives insight to some of the cultural aspects as they related to the Japanese war effort in that era. In particular I found the method of informing individuals that they had been drafted very interesting along with their ruthlessness in appropriating war materials from private businesses. Anyways, a basic understanding of the Japanese strategy for defending the island would be helpful in following some of the action but not necessary to enjoying the movie.
In some ways it reminded me of Alls Quiet on the Western Front. It had that anti-war feel to it.
Warning, it is also subtitled.
While I'm here I'll also mention another good movie I recently saw. It's titled Feerless and it is the story of a Chinese martial artist named Huo Yuanjia. Huo is a real person but his story, from what I've been able to understand, has been mythologized to the point where it's hard to know what is really true. This is a martial arts movie but it's more of a personal journey and self discovery movie IMO. I suspect that some people would equate martial arts with personal journey. Anyways, you don't have to be a fan of martial arts to enjoy Feerless.
This move is also subtitled.
As I write this I noticed that my two favorite movies this year are both subtitled. Wow, I never considered myself to be an artsy-fartsy kinda guy. I guess I'll just have to go see the new Die Hard movie to get the Universe back into balance.
In some ways it reminded me of Alls Quiet on the Western Front. It had that anti-war feel to it.
Warning, it is also subtitled.
While I'm here I'll also mention another good movie I recently saw. It's titled Feerless and it is the story of a Chinese martial artist named Huo Yuanjia. Huo is a real person but his story, from what I've been able to understand, has been mythologized to the point where it's hard to know what is really true. This is a martial arts movie but it's more of a personal journey and self discovery movie IMO. I suspect that some people would equate martial arts with personal journey. Anyways, you don't have to be a fan of martial arts to enjoy Feerless.
This move is also subtitled.
As I write this I noticed that my two favorite movies this year are both subtitled. Wow, I never considered myself to be an artsy-fartsy kinda guy. I guess I'll just have to go see the new Die Hard movie to get the Universe back into balance.
