Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence (The Criterion Collection) (1983)

This marvelous film, based on my favorite novel "The Seed And The Sower" by Sir Laurence Van Der Post, is light years away from the stereotypical prisoner-of-war film. It is so because of its profound understanding of clashing cultures, the hatreds that drive them, and the love that redeems hostile nations time and time again. David Bowie is often cited as the main character, but in actuality, his is a compelling supporting role. Tom Conti has the best role of his career as Lieutenant Colonel John Lawrence, a British officer imprisoned in a camp on Java. Japanese composer Ryuichi Sakamoto scored the film and also plays Captain Yonoi, the aristocratic, Shakespeare-quoting commandant of the camp. These two characters have a strong relationship which, nevertheless, is handicapped by the fact that Lawrence understands the Japanese better than Yonoi understands the British. Yonoi, and Bowie's character, Major Jack Celliers, are wracked with guilt over incidents in their past; Yonoi was unable to be with, and die with, his comrades, the "shining young officers" of Japan's February 1936 military coup. Celliers betrayed his deformed younger brother while attending boarding school. Lawrence is caught in the middle of these two tortured men. He is repelled by the brutality of the Japanese, even as he respects them, and their samurai code of honor. Indeed, wayward Japanese guards are dealt cruel and lightening-fast corporal punishment by their officers; and mistreatment of the prisoners is due to cultural belief, not simple sadism. The beauty of this film lies in the empathy that ostensible enemies feel for one another, and the unexpected kindnesses they show toward one another. But Yonoi's devotion to bushido, and blindness to the British sense of honor, leads to a startling climax. If the final scene doesn't make you weep, then get your heart checked, will you?

An amazing film, only slightly marred by a few botched scenes and poor editing. (Oshima rarely shot more than one take.)

I've been suckered into a few other DVD releases of this film, so I was skeptical about this one. However in selling my other two copies and taking the money from those sells and buying this one, well need I say this is the last version, but the one I'm completely satisfied with. The extras included filmed memories by Ryuichi Sakamoto, Producer JeremyThomas and Director Nagisa Oshima as well as an 1983 thirty-minute behind the scenes short. The film is beautiful and has been mastered from a new 35MM print and the haunting score by Ryuichi Sakamoto makes this DVD a treasured film for years to come.

Buy Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence (The Criterion Collection) (1983) Now

A highly unusual war movie with as many detractors as fans, this English-language feature directed by Nagisa Oshima (In the Realm of the Senses) stars David Bowie as a silent, ethereal POW in a Japanese camp. Protesting--via his own enigmatic rebellion--the camp's brutal conditions and treatment of prisoners, Bowie's character earns the respect of the camp commandant (Ryuichi Sakamoto). While the two seem locked in an unspoken, spiritual understanding, another prisoner (Tom Conti) engages in a more conventional resistance against a monstrous sergeant (Takeshi). The film has a way of evoking as many questions as certainties, and it is not always easy to understand the internal logic of the characters' actions. But that's generally true of Oshima's movies, in which the power of certain relationships is almost hallucinatory in self-referential intensity. The cast is outstanding, and Bowie is particularly fascinating in his alien way.

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I originally saw this movie many years ago on a cable premium movie channel, and I think that version had either English subtitles or dubbed English vocals for the Japanese dialog. Anyway, the particular VHS version offered here by Amazon has neither. Amazon's product description does not warn potential purchasers of this "missing piece." That said, I am glad that I decided to purchase this movie (VHS video) so that I could see it again. Also, for you viewers who are members of the NetFlix or Blockbuster rental video service, a Region 1 DVD is not available (as of Feb. 2007).

This movie is one of the most unique and interesting WWII movies I have ever seen. Tom Conti (Lawrence) and Davie Bowie (Celliers) give knockout performances. The Japanese actors are equally excellent. With the lack of subtitles, one has to guess what is transpiring when the characters are speaking Japanese (quite a lot of Japanese dialog). Fortunately, the Japanese actors are very good with facial expressions and body language, which provide some insight into what is going on.

Some reviewers have compared "Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence" with "The Bridge On the River Kwai" (1957). The former reflects the sensibilities of a Japanese director, and the latter the sensibilities of a British director (David Lean). Therefore, IMO, a direct comparison is not really meaningful. These two films are so very different in many ways. I also think that "Merry Christmas..." is not so much a "war movie" as it is a study in the contrast of Japanese culture and values with Western ones. The plot also explores, with the Celliers' character, the tortured mind of a man who finds himself in the most desperate of circumstances.

In summary, this is a very unusual WWII movie, but well worth the time you need to invest in understanding the character development of the Allied and Japanese soldiers without benefit of English subtitles. Perhaps sometime in the near future, this movie will be released in a Region 1 DVD format with subtitles and some digital restoration of the original film. Such an effort should well reward the owners of this film financially. And, of course, the many lovers of this movie (in Region 1--USA and Canada) will benefit, too.

Want Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence (The Criterion Collection) (1983) Discount?

Tom Conti is a British Officer who questions a Japanese officer (R Sakamoto) at the end of WW2. He asks questions about another British officer (David Bowie) who had been a prisoner of the Japanese in a camp commanded by Sakamoto. Told in flashbacks it's tells the difference in cultures between the British and Japanese. Sakakoto tries to break Bowie but in the end is taken prisoner by the British. Good story but sometime brutal and disturbing. Overall I recommend it for the 3 actors and the way the movie portrays what being a POW in a Japanese prison was like. Criterion is the best when remastering these older movies.

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