This was a good film about the Japanese occupation of China in WW2, but I do not recommend it for the purpose of learning about Asians in Asia. This film centered around a young British teenager who gets separated from his family in the early phases of the Japanese occupation of China in WW2. It did reference something I learned during the Asia since 1800 (July 2012) Seminar, which was how the Japanese Army dealt with the foreign community who lived in the Treaty Port areas. We learned that before 1941 these people were left alone, but that changed after the attack on Pearl Harbor. This film is about how many British and American citizens were treated and later taken as POWS to prison camps.
Half the film tells the story of life in such a prison camp and all on Chinese territory. The boy remains hopeful and upbeat during the ordeal and helps to keep up the morale of the inmates. It is a good movie, but not a great one in my view but I enjoyed it nonetheless. I would recommend 'To Live' (by Johnny Mo - English spelling) to show how history affected common people in China since WW2 instead of 'Empire of the Sun' .
edited by edukleth on 8/28/2012
edited by edukleth on 8/28/2012
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