"Sometimes the truth is the last thing we need to hear"

Rating: 8/10 (28 April 2014)

THE FLOWERS of WAR is a disturbing yet touching film that truly captures the horrors of the Japanese occupation of Nanking, 1937. Long, graphically realistic scenes of war violence and carnage, as well as the numerous rapes which often ended in murder. Though the transformation in his character from totally selfish to completely selfless is a little sudden, Christian Bale gives a strong performance as John Miller. Virtually all of the Chinese ladies--both the Winchester Cathedral girls and the courtesans--are similarly well-portrayed. The beautifully peaceful singing by the choir girls provides a believable contrast to the horrors going on all around them. Special mention should also be given to Dawei Tong as Major Li.
While THE FLOWERS of WAR puts no blankets over the brutality of this event, it also shows both sides of the Japanese coin. Even at their most barbaric, the marauding soldiers still come across as eminently human. Humans, of course, can be pretty terrible, but regardless, I know of very few western films that succeed so well in portraying the WWII-era Japanese as something other than just faceless, sinister, bestial monsters. The ending is unexpected, heart-rending, but similarly believable.