"Lorelei: The Witch of the Pacific Ocean" could be said the first of the "trilogy" (though almost entirely made, distributed and directed by different entities, for a good reason, to "divide the pie") based on novels written by Harutoshi Fukui (born 1968), with the other two being "Sengoku jieitai 1549" and the upcoming "AEGIS". A German- made submarine equipped with a secret weapon is dispatched on a mission to prevent the third A-bombing of Japan, the target this time being Tokyo. The film has all the elements to make it a good submarine movie including special effects underwater sequences and a mutiny, so I won't go into that. What makes this film, and the Fukui trilogy, special is how it treats the motivations for fighting a war.
Just a few years ago, "Hotaru" (2001, starred by Ken Takakura, who's starred in so many yakuza movies) treated "the same old stuff" about the tragedy of kamikaze pilots, for whom fighting and dying was "Imperial will" and no one doubted it, but in actuality, the real soldiers weren't sure if they were dying from their own will, or were just being forced to die. That is basically the theme that Japanese war movies have treated for the last 60 years.
"Lorelei" makes a little departure from that tradition in a good way. But it also drags that tradition. A young crew (who is convinced that he is fighting for the Emperor) asks a young girl "What do you fight for?" and the girl answers "Because I can sing, if I survive". Or, the Captain, after communication with the command structure was broken, solicits for volunteers to go shoot down the B29 strategic bomber that is about to take off to A-bomb Tokyo. He does not force his men to follow him in this suicidal mission, nor does he fight for any Imperial will; he and those who volunteered wanted to protect Tokyo their beloved city and its people their friends. Sounds normal? But this motivation was quite ABNORMAL in the war times. Soldiers had no free will to fight. They believed, or were forced into believing that to fight and die was virtue and honor. Anyone who doubted it was treated as traitor. It was patriotism elevated to religion. For 60 years, countless Japanese TV dramas and movies have doubted this belief, but were not able to come up with any alternative motivation for fighting a war. "Lorelei"'s answer to this question is that one fights for what he/she believes in, no matter what it is. But, that's all that the film can say anything about this issue.
So, "What do you fight for?" is not just a question that the young soldier asks. It has been a question that almost every Japanese has been asking since the end of WWII and not many have been able to come up with definitive answers. "Because I can sing, if I survive" could be one of the most definitive (and in my opinion, convincing) answers that anyone's ever been able to produce. See the array of the Japanese ground force weaponry in "Sengoku jieitai 1549" and naval and air weaponry in the upcoming "AEGIS". Then think about the situation that not too many soldiers who will be using those weapons will have any definitive idea as to what they will be using them for. I guess I'm being sarcastic. But this is the situation that has resulted from the defeat in WWII and the "peace Constitution" nonsense. Find parallels in (German) "Das Boot" (1981), but note the fundamental differences. Also defeated in WWII, THEY knew what they were fighting for. So, statements like "ask not what your country can do for you--ask what you can do for your country" will fall on dead ears in Japan. People here aren't sure if their country is doing anything for them other than ripping off taxes, and have no idea what they can do for their country; or rather, doing anything "for the country" had been and is still considered a taboo (considered "ultranationalism"). This point is clearly made in "Lorelei", and if you missed this point, you've missed the whole point.
To compensate for this boring "comment", if you like anime, especially "Space Pirate Captain Herlock", though I'm not sure how its Western version turned out, the Captain of this submarine is depicted in his image ("Fight only for what you believe in"). Koji Yakusho who plays that role even looks like Herlock with his black coat and cap. The secret weapon "Lorelei" is also more animetic than scientific. There are also unrealistic, animetic scenes in which the sub shoots U.S. destroyers' screw shafts with non-detonating torpedoes. Or, can a sub shoot down a flying B29 with its cannon? These are all unrealistic, but seen as anime, they are "fantastic" if you know what I mean. But of course, this mixing of anime elements could be the film's shortcoming, especially if you've never seen an anime.
If you are tired of watching Japanese war movies that only depict the aforementioned "tragedy", you will be relieved to see this movie. It looks so NORMAL, after 60 years of self-repentance for allegedly starting the Pacific War under "brainwashed" mentality. (7/01/'05)
Just a few years ago, "Hotaru" (2001, starred by Ken Takakura, who's starred in so many yakuza movies) treated "the same old stuff" about the tragedy of kamikaze pilots, for whom fighting and dying was "Imperial will" and no one doubted it, but in actuality, the real soldiers weren't sure if they were dying from their own will, or were just being forced to die. That is basically the theme that Japanese war movies have treated for the last 60 years.
"Lorelei" makes a little departure from that tradition in a good way. But it also drags that tradition. A young crew (who is convinced that he is fighting for the Emperor) asks a young girl "What do you fight for?" and the girl answers "Because I can sing, if I survive". Or, the Captain, after communication with the command structure was broken, solicits for volunteers to go shoot down the B29 strategic bomber that is about to take off to A-bomb Tokyo. He does not force his men to follow him in this suicidal mission, nor does he fight for any Imperial will; he and those who volunteered wanted to protect Tokyo their beloved city and its people their friends. Sounds normal? But this motivation was quite ABNORMAL in the war times. Soldiers had no free will to fight. They believed, or were forced into believing that to fight and die was virtue and honor. Anyone who doubted it was treated as traitor. It was patriotism elevated to religion. For 60 years, countless Japanese TV dramas and movies have doubted this belief, but were not able to come up with any alternative motivation for fighting a war. "Lorelei"'s answer to this question is that one fights for what he/she believes in, no matter what it is. But, that's all that the film can say anything about this issue.
So, "What do you fight for?" is not just a question that the young soldier asks. It has been a question that almost every Japanese has been asking since the end of WWII and not many have been able to come up with definitive answers. "Because I can sing, if I survive" could be one of the most definitive (and in my opinion, convincing) answers that anyone's ever been able to produce. See the array of the Japanese ground force weaponry in "Sengoku jieitai 1549" and naval and air weaponry in the upcoming "AEGIS". Then think about the situation that not too many soldiers who will be using those weapons will have any definitive idea as to what they will be using them for. I guess I'm being sarcastic. But this is the situation that has resulted from the defeat in WWII and the "peace Constitution" nonsense. Find parallels in (German) "Das Boot" (1981), but note the fundamental differences. Also defeated in WWII, THEY knew what they were fighting for. So, statements like "ask not what your country can do for you--ask what you can do for your country" will fall on dead ears in Japan. People here aren't sure if their country is doing anything for them other than ripping off taxes, and have no idea what they can do for their country; or rather, doing anything "for the country" had been and is still considered a taboo (considered "ultranationalism"). This point is clearly made in "Lorelei", and if you missed this point, you've missed the whole point.
To compensate for this boring "comment", if you like anime, especially "Space Pirate Captain Herlock", though I'm not sure how its Western version turned out, the Captain of this submarine is depicted in his image ("Fight only for what you believe in"). Koji Yakusho who plays that role even looks like Herlock with his black coat and cap. The secret weapon "Lorelei" is also more animetic than scientific. There are also unrealistic, animetic scenes in which the sub shoots U.S. destroyers' screw shafts with non-detonating torpedoes. Or, can a sub shoot down a flying B29 with its cannon? These are all unrealistic, but seen as anime, they are "fantastic" if you know what I mean. But of course, this mixing of anime elements could be the film's shortcoming, especially if you've never seen an anime.
If you are tired of watching Japanese war movies that only depict the aforementioned "tragedy", you will be relieved to see this movie. It looks so NORMAL, after 60 years of self-repentance for allegedly starting the Pacific War under "brainwashed" mentality. (7/01/'05)