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The Burmese Harp Photos
Movie Info
When a Japanese platoon surrenders to British forces in Burma in 1943, the platoon's harp player, Mizushima (Shôji Yasui), is selected from the prisoners of war to deliver a request for surrender to a Japanese regiment holed up on a mountain. Mizushima fails to convince the soldiers to accept defeat, and a last stand commences. Traumatized by the bloodshed of his fellow countrymen, Mizushima disguises himself as a Buddhist monk and begins a journey toward peace of mind amid the chaos.
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Genre: War
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Original Language: Japanese
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Director: Kon Ichikawa
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Producer: Masayuki Takaki
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Writer: Natto Wada, Michio Takeyama
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Release Date (Theaters): wide
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Release Date (DVD):
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Runtime:
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Distributor: Criterion Collection, Brandon Films Inc.
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Production Co: Nikkatsu Corporation
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Sound Mix: Surround
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Critic Reviews for The Burmese Harp
Audience Reviews for The Burmese Harp
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<i>The soil of Burma is red, and so are its rocks...</i> <i>Biruma no Tategoto</i> was based on a book by the author Michio Takeyama specifically designed to introduce children to the fundamental principles of Buddhism. Regardless of that, the story has a universal appeal, having an empathetic message of humanism just like the post-war Japanese films had, including Masaki Kobayashi. Ichikawa's adaptation intentions of this emotionally powerful story are, in my humble opinion, two: I. The first innert protagonist to play a role is music. Music, as any other art form including cinema, is an exteriorization of the contents of the soul. It is through art that we unravel the most meaningful content of life and its content, and most importantly, us. In a similar way the monolith in Kubrick's space adventure would be placed in key moments of human evolution, music intervenes in the story at key points during the evolution of the plot, and most importantly, throughout Mizushima's epiphanic journey. It is a form of communication with two peculiar characteristics: it wasn't made for receiving feedback (as in, music speaks but does not listen), and it can be spoken with multiple voices sharing a common sentiment. Such sentiment strengthens human bonds and even has the capacity of establishing commonoly shared norms in a society. Music can also relief pain and cure the consequences of loneliness. II. One of the most saddening conclusions I have come to during my short 23-year-long stay in this world is that most of us require events of a magnitude much more superior to ours in order to open our eyes to greater truths. Some of those truths were not meant to be understood by us. They are axiomatic, even if not self-evident or obvious. We are governed by absolutes, and the unsurpassable value of human life is one of them. We were all created equal, so human conflicts should be left out of life's equation. That is one of the discoveries of Mizushima. You may attack his moral with yours, because he may be more helpful aiding his country directly, staying with his loved ones, but the truth is that you don't know. People require help everywhere. Japan's respect both to death and to the effort that the living must put to ensure that the lost souls can find eternal rest with a proper burial and rituals are activities that do not coincide with my beliefs, yet I find them extremely honorable and empathetic. Once again, Japan reinforces its king status in black-and-white cinematography, in creating engaging stories with meaningful content, and in creating complex character studies. This time, war is not a central topic; rather, it was the perfect excuse for the film's delivery of its messages. 99/100
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A beautiful and moving film, Biruma no Tategoto (The Burmese Harp) is a terrific work by Mr. Ichikawa. With unforgettable actings, just like the screenplay and photography, the movie is an obligatory art film, that presents a powerful antiwar message. Fresh.
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A Kon Ichikawa work charged with sincerity and depth, The Burmese Harp explores the fraternal relationship in a brethren of World War II Japanese soldiers. Passionate. Melodious. Spiritual. Powerful. Enlightened.
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Certainly, "The Burmese Harp" has a powerful premise. A small Japanese squad is stranded in Burma at the end of World War II. Now that Japan has officially surrendered, the men only want to return home. But one soldier stays behind, piously devoting himself to burying the Japanese corpses that litter the land. So far, so good. But the execution of this story is surprisingly mawkish -- an unusual flaw considering that, if anything, Japanese movie characters tend to be too stoic. The problems begin with the music -- this delicate troop of choirboys loves nothing more than to burst into song. Naturally, their solemn, traditional hymns are delivered with perfect pitch and studio acoustics. The songs only seem cornier and more implausible as the film continues -- to give an idea of the script's subtlety, the most repeated tune is "Home, Sweet Home." There's even a second squad who turns up with a hidden talent for choral arrangements. Yup, it's a sing-off. The weepy sentimentality is further upped by the overuse of talking parrots to convey heartfelt messages, plus the unlikelihood of soldiers in a prison camp being concerned with almost nothing except the fate of their one separated friend. It's all rather heavy-handed -- I found myself thinking of the preachier pacifist episodes of "The Twilight Zone." If you can filter the above out of your experience and just focus on the philosophical journey of the wayward soldier Mizushima, "The Burmese Harp" holds its own as an affecting anti-war film.
eric b Super Reviewer
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