City of Life and Death

Starring: Hideo Nakaizumi, Ye Liu, Yiyang Jiang, John Paisly, Yuanyuan Gao

Synopsis:

Nanking, 1937: Japanese forces have laid siege to the ancient walled city for weeks, finally pummelling their defences to dust. The Chinese high command having fled, leaving soldiers and civilians alike to the mercy of the Japanese army.

As the Japanese round up the remaining soldiers, a German merchant called John Rabe tries to provide aid and shelter to the scared populace. Those that survive are witness to one of the most horrific war atrocities in history.

Review:

The “Rape of Nanking” and The Holocaust is one of those moments in history where it is nigh-on impossible to spin out a story with a happy ending – and nor should you try, in my opinion. Films which deal with either period, regardless of how well they are crafted, are unlikely to be a good time at the movies.

This is why the review disc for City of Life and Death has sat on my shelf for over a month. I knew I was going to have to tackle it sooner or later, but I kept putting it off, stealing my resolve for the moment I could sit down and let it hit me.

What I was unprepared for, was the incredible art direction, cinematography and film-making skill that has gone into making this film. The black-and-white photography made it clear that this wasn’t going to be some lurid spectacle (although there are loads of gruesome moments along the way). I was also unprepared for the way the plot was allowed to develop.

For about half the running time, we see events unfold through a Japanese foot-soldier called Kadokawa. Things start innocuously enough, with the rounding up of a whole bunch of refugees, but soon Kadokawa is witnessing horrific events, such as beheadings and executions on the street as soldiers loot houses.

The action then cuts to Lu Jianxiong (Ye Liu, who can also be seen in Benny Chan’s Connected) , a Chinese soldier leading a small pocket of resistance. An exciting battle takes place in which Lu and his young soldiers (some literally children) hold off a battalion as long as possible, until forced to surrender.

Having rounded up so many prisoners, the Japanese decide to just dispose of them. This is one of the most difficult moments in the film, as half of the prisoners are herded off in different directions. Some are locked in a barn which has been doused in gasoline and set on fire. Others are mowed down by machine guns with their backs against the sea. The worst for me personally though was witnessing prisoners being buried alive, with the soldiers stamping the earth down flat again afterwards. All of this is shot in a very matter-of-fact style, with no attempt to over-dramatise the moment (no close ups or slo-mo death scenes, no music to manipulate your emotions).

The story then shifts to John Rabe, a real-life German merchant who, like Oskar Schindler, found himself trying to save an oppressed people from certain death. However on of Rabe’s assistants, Mr Tang (Wei Fan), has jeopardised their plight by telling the Japanese that there are Chinese soldiers hiding within the refugee camp. In order to appease their oppressors, 100 women must be provided to “service” the soldiers. In return, the refugees will be provided with food and clothing. The scene where John Rabe has to ask his “congregation” to volunteer for this, is heartbreaking – even more so when volunteers come forward.

Nothing actually graphic is shown here, but the situation is depicted in such a way that what happened to these women is stuck in your mind for a long time after. These girls were held for three weeks. Each soldier is given a condom and a 15 minute time slot. You can do the math.

The direction and cinematography is just amazing. Shot entirely in black and white, it has an expressionist feel to it, with lots of close-ups of people’s faces. There’s no attempt to add drama to the atrocities, they are carried out in a matter-of-face style for the most part. The exception comes when Lu, along with the second batch of prisoners are taken to a field to be shot. Upon seeing their already-fallen comrades, and knowing exactly what is about to happen to them, they start defiantly yelling things like “China shall not be broken!” Lu, meanwhile, simply covers the eyes of his too-young companion...

There are a lot more talking points in this film, some of them horrific, some of them actually quite beautiful. All of the film is immaculately composed, with a sparse score underpinning the drama when needed. However I feel I have dwelled enough on this film and now need to watch something a bit more fluffy and colourful.

Verdict:

An incredibly well-made film about an incredibly harrowing atrocity. I was not looking forward to seeing this, but have ended up glad I did. If you enjoyed Spielberg’s Schindler’s List, then this film is certainly on the same level of filmatism. However, this is not going to be to everybody’s taste and there are some horrific moments.

8 out of 10 (MikeOutWest)

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