The Japan Society Review
Book, Stage, Movie, Arts and Events Review

Editor: Sean Curtin
Managing Editor: Jack Cooke........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

Issue 35 Volume 6 Number 5 (October 2011)

Contents
1) Policy Entrepreneurship and Elections in Japan: A Political Biographyof Ozawa Ichiro
2) Reform Plans for Japan (日本改造計画)
3) Blueprint for a New Japan: The Rethinking of a Nation
4) Strong Arm Restoration (剛腕維新)
5) Confessions of a Dog (ポチの告白)
6) Japanesque: The Japanese Print in the Era of Impressionism
7) Departures (おくりびと)
www.japansociety.org.uk/22268/departures-おくりびと
8) Legend of the Millennium Dragon (鬼神伝)
www.japansociety.org.uk/.../legend-of-the-millennium-dragon-鬼神9) Nuclear Dawn, The Atomic Bomb from the Manhattan Project to
the Cold War

In this issue we delve into the murky world of Japanesepolitics focusing on one of the pivotal contemporary
figures in the nation’s ever changing political landscape,Ichiro Ozawa. He was instrumental in toppling the LDPfrom power in the 1993 and was the master strategist
who brought the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) topower in 2009, dispatching the LDP for a second time.
While we often think of Japanese politics as relatively
stable, Ozawa’s career reminds how fluidic it can be
and the complexities of the country’s political narrative.
In four reviews, we look at Ozawa’s astonishing careerand driving philosophy. Firstly in a fascinating and wellresearched biography by Takashi Oka who charts the ....................................................................................................
influence Ozawa has exerted on the Japanese political
Policy Entrepreneurship andscene since his election to the Diet in 1969. Ozawa has
Elections in Japan: A Politicalexperienced periods at the top of political power as
Biography of Ozawa Ichiro
well as periods in the wilderness, yet he is the great
political survivor - seemingly indestructible. The three
by Takashi Oka
other Ozawa reviews focus on his political philosophy
Nissan Institute / Routledge
and ideas, many of which still resonate today.
Japanese Studies, 2011, 210 pages
Moving away from political machinations, Susan£85
Meehan examines a disturbing and grim movie about
ISBN-10: 0415587522 & ISBN-13:
the underside of the Japanese police. Director Gen
978-0415587525
Takahashi’s Confessions of a Dog is a powerful, dark andReview by Sean Curtin
highly critical examination of the nation’s police force
based on Takahashi’s own encounters with the police.
Love him or loathe him, but you
In many respects it’s a tragedy as it charts the downfall
certainly cannot ignore Ichiroof a once honest cop. On a brighter note Sir Hugh Ozawa, one of Japan’s most enduring and influential
Cortazzi looks at Karin Breuer image-rich “Japanesque: politicians of the last few decades. Takashi Ota, veteran
The Japanese Print in the Era of Impressionism,” in journalist and former Ozawa aid, has produced the firstwhich she explores the origins and development of English language political biography of this pivotal figure in
Japanese prints, the aesthetics of ukiyo-e, the impact modern Japanese politics. In this superbly researched andon European artists and Japanese style in American insightful work, Dr. Ota traces Ozawa’s career all the way fromprintmaking. Next Michael Sullivan re-examines the childhood to the present, charting its rollercoaster-like ups
award winning and much loved movie “Departures” and downs along with the spectacular twists and turns. He(おくりびと) which is acclaimed for its captivating seeks to define Ozawa the man, understand his core politicalcinematic scenery, beautiful musical score and superb philosophy and explain his actions. Making use of extensive
acting. The issue is rounded off by Susan Meehan’s interviews with key political players and other source material,
look at Hirotsugu Kawasaki monster-packed anime he constructs a comprehensive profile. Is Ozawa, as his critics“Legend of the Millennium Dragon” (鬼神伝) and Hugh claim, an old-style, power-hungry, money-centred political
Cortazzi’s review of “Nuclear Dawn” by James P. Delgado. dinosaur or a genuine reformer and political visionary who

has reshaped Japanese politics or is he perhaps something
in-between? Ota’s mission is to answer this and other crucial........................................................................................... questions about this key political figure.
Sean Curtin

New reviewswww.japansociety.org.uk/resources/the-japan-society-review
Archive
http://www.japansociety.org.uk/reviews_archive.html
We are grateful to our regular reviewers

Sir Hugh Cortazzi
Fumiko Halloran
Ian NishMichael Sullivan
Susan Meehan
Ali Muskett

Ozawa’s incredible political journey has taken him from being
one of the most powerful figures in the Liberal Democratic
Party (LDP) to leader and still powerful figure in the now
governing Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ). Ozawa was the
LDP Secretary General in the administration of Prime Minister
Toshiki Kaifu (海部 俊樹) and de facto deputy leader. Whenhe became Secretary General in 1989 under Kaifu (August
1989 – November 1991), he used his position to try to......................................................................................................................................................................................................

change the electoral system and create a more balanced
political dynamic (pages 25-38). According to this bookOzawa declined an offer to become LDP Prime Minister in
October 1991 (pages 59-60).
Ozawa has distinctive ideas and a clear vision of Japan
becoming what he terms “a normal nation.” He set out
these principles in his influential 1993 book “Reform
Plans for Japan” (日本改造計画)* in which he sees Japantaking a more active role in international affairs (seepages 39-56). Ozawa is a proponent of the independenceof the individual as opposed to the more mainstream
Japanese trend of emphasizing the importance of thegroup. He is also committed to electoral reforms and theestablishment of a two-party system, something he haslargely achieved. Ota observes, “Political reform within
Japan and active involvement and participation in theinternational community became the twin themes of
Ozawa’s political career (page 25).”
In 1993 frustration with the moribund LDP and political
friction with his rivals led Ozawa to jump ship along withanother prominent LDP lawmaker, Tsutomu Hata [羽田孜], together they formed the Japan Renewal Party (新生党). This action brought down the long ruling LDP and
helped usher in the first non-LDP government since 1955
(pages 57-68). Ota explains that Ozawa was instrumental
in bringing together a coalition of parties to form the new
government and selecting Morihiro Hosokawa (細川 護煕) as Prime Minister instead of putting himself forward.
Ota writes, “Ozawa willingly scarified, at least for theimmediate future, his own prime ministerial ambitions inorder to create a united political force with enough publiccredibility to replace the LDP (page 110).”
However, Ozawa’s coalition was short-lived lasting just 9months, but by changing the electoral system during thisperiod its long term impact changed the face of Japanesepolitics (page 69-80). He spearheaded “a revolt within theruling Liberal Democratic Party, which ended thirty-eight
years of one-party dominance and inaugurated a periodof shifting coalitions which has continued even after the
DPJ’s landslide victory in the August 2009 general election(page 29).”
After the coalition’s demise in 1994 Ozawa was ejected into
political opposition for most of the intervening 15 years(pages 81-99). Yet, after a spell in the political wilderness
he returned to power as the leader of the Democratic Partyof Japan (DPJ) and later as DPJ Secretary General after thelandslide election of 2009 (pages 128-140). Ota masterfully
chronicles the incredible zigzag journey Ozawa undertook
to arrive at his current destination, seeing him as a policy
entrepreneur who uses his talent to achieve institutionalchange. Ota utilizes John Kingdon’s theoretical “criticaljunctures” approach to interpret his actions.
The basic argument of the book is that “by precipitating
the [1993] election, winning agreement on the new
Prime Minister, and changing the electoral system, Ozawa
transformed the dynamics of political competition in
Japan to bring about a nascent two-party system (page267).” Ota states, “the single-seat system is most likely to
be considered Ozawa’s crowning achievement, one thatchanged the nature of leadership both for the ruling party
and the opposition in the kind of two-party system that
Ozawa envisaged and Koizumi largely achieved (page157).”The book is packed with insightful analysis, for example,
it foretells of the political gridlock of a divided Diet, Ota
observes, “There is an upper house election to be fought
in July 2010, the outcome of which will determine thelongevity of the DPJ’s hold on power (page 11).
Ozawa has been on an incredible political journey andremains hugely influential. Despite his present difficulties
the Japanese media still refers to him as “the kingpin”
and “shadow shogun.” In an Epilogue, we are brought up
to date with the current chapter of the Ozawa saga, his
indicted in a political funding scandal, something he may
emerge from unscathed. The author confides, “I believe it
is still possible for Ozawa to become Prime Minister, once
he is cleared of the charges brought by the citizen’s panel(page 165-66).” While not everyone will agree with thisassessment, it is difficult to disagree with Ota’s concluding
remark that Ozawa “deserves his place in Japanese history
as a statesman who became the agent of long-standing
political change (page 166).”

Reform Plans for Japan[日本改造計画]
by Ichiro Ozawa [小沢一郎]
Kodansha[講談社], May 1993
(23rd printing as of May 2006),
258 pages, 1500 yen
ISBN-10: 4062064820 & ISBN-13:
978-4062064828
Review by Fumiko Halloran
Ichiro Ozawa is a controversial figure with great politicalskills and strong leadership ability. He once presided over
the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) as its powerful Secretary
General whose ability in raising funds was legendary. He wasa protégé of late Prime Minister Kakuei Tanaka [田中 角栄],
whose ambitious plans to cover Japan with highways andrailways transformed regional economies but escalated
the corrupt links between industry and politicians. Tanaka
was later found guilty of bribery in the Lockheed scandal inwhich he was charged with accepting five hundred million
yen from Lockheed for his role in reversing the selection ofAmerican airplanes for All Nippon Airways.
Ozawa was born in 1942 in Iwate Prefecture into a politicalfamily, his father having been a member of the Tokyo City
Council, and later a member of the House of Representatives.
Ozawa graduated from Keio University in 1967 and did
graduate study at Nippon University. In 1969, he ran as a LDP
candidate and was elected to the House of Representatives
Issue 35 Volume 6 Number 5 (October 2011)

from a district in Iwate. Since then, he has been elected to
the Lower House at every election since his first victory in
27 December 1969. He steadily rose in the party, serving at
various times as parliamentary vice minister for the scienceand technology agency, ministry of construction, theparliamentary steering committee chair, then as minister ofhome affairs, chairman of the National Security Commission,and LDP Secretary General from 1989 to 1991.
In 1993, however, Ozawa split from LDP and with Tsutomu
Hata [羽田 孜] formed the Japan Renewal Party [新生党].
Together with other opposition parties, they succeeded inwinning the majority of seats in the Lower House election,with Morihiro Hosokawa [細川 護煕] as prime minister. This
coup was short lived and the LDP won back a majority in
1994. In 2003, the two opposition parties, the Democratic
Party and the Liberal Party, joined forces to establish the
Democratic Party of Japan [民主党]. Ozawa was elected
its leader in 2006. In the summer of 2007, the Democratic
Party gained the majority in the House of Councillors, aforetaste of its historic victory in the August 2009 generalelection for the Lower House. However, Ozawa had been
forced to step down as party leader before the victory due
to a funding scandal but was appointed DPJ Secretary
General after the election.
After Ozawa’s book, “Reform Plans for Japan,” was publishedin 1993, it became a best seller. It was rare at that time for apolitician to lay out specific policy proposals for reforms inpolitical, economic, security, and social issues. It is still widely
read among those who seek answers to solving problems
that Japan faces today.
In domestic policies, Ozawa advocates reform in the structureof government. For example, he proposes to introduce thesystem of special advisors to the prime minister, making
the chief cabinet secretary the senior advisor, similar to the
National Security Advisor in Washington. To break down
the walls between ministries, he proposes that the prime
minister’s spokesperson, rather than cabinet ministers,announce major policy decisions to increase the stature of
the prime minister as the face of the nation.
The power of a Japanese prime minister is limited eventhough he is the head of the majority party in the parliament.
Apart from the cabinet, the party’s decision-making often
supersedes the prime minister’s preference. To streamline theprocess of decision-making, Ozawa proposes to bring senior
party leaders into the cabinet by giving them posts as ministers
at large, following a British model. By doing so, Ozawa assertsthat control on policy matters by the bureaucrats would be
eliminated, breaking the tradition of politicians relying on
bureaucrats during debates in parliament.
On foreign policy and security, perhaps the phrase, becoming
an ordinary nation [普通の国になる], is the best known line
encapsulating Ozawa’s thinking. He asserts that Japan should
not neglect its responsibility in security, sharing the cost ofpeace and freedom. While keeping the U.S.-Japan security
alliance as the basis of Japan’s foreign policy, Ozawa wants tochange the mission of the Self Defence Forces from defence
to participation in peacekeeping missions as a part of theIssue 35Volume 6 Number 5 (October 2011)

United Nations collective security apparatus. He believes thisis doable under the present constitution.
He allots considerable space to the UN as the vehicle tocreate a new world order. He appeals to the United States
to use the UN and work with UN. His assumption, when thisbook was written in 1993 during the Clinton administration,
was that the U.S. government was moving in that direction.
He even proposed creating a separate Japanese military unitthat could be called upon by the UN Secretary General who,
according to Ozawa, has authority to order such forces totake action.
He would thus abandon the authority of the Japanese
government to deploy such a force. Ozawa’s belief in therole that the UN could play, and his willingness to let the UN
shape the future of the nation’s Self Defence Forces has met
sharp criticism from lawmakers critical of the ability of the UN
to resolve international conflicts. Ozawa to this day, however,seems to stick to his UN initiative proposal.

Blueprint for a New Japan:
The Rethinking of a Nation
by Ichiro Ozawa, translated
by Louisa Rubinfien withintroduction by Senator Jay
Rockefeller
Kodansha International Ltd,
1994, 208 pages, ISBN-10:
4770018711
Review by Sean Curtin
Published in 1994 after the long dominant Liberal
Democratic Party (LDP) had lost the July 1993 election,
this is not a direct translation of Ichiro Ozawa’s Japaneseoriginal (日本改造計画). While the English and Japaneseversions are similar, the English edition has a much morevisionary feel and is bursting with the energy of Ozawa’s
electoral success. The book reminds us how different
politics could have been if the coalition had stayed together
and the Japan Socialist Party had not in June 1994 formed
an alliance with the LDP, its erstwhile bitter political foe offive decades. Ozawa sets out his distinctive vision for a newJapan, charting a course for the country to become what heterms a “normal nation.”
The English version has an introduction by Senator Jay
Rockefeller in which he proclaims, “Japan has also begun a
new era in its political life. The 1993 election of a government
not headed by the Liberal Democratic Party represented amonumental change in its political circumstances (page15).” At the front of the book Henry Kissinger is also quoted assaying that Ozawa’s mission is “transforming the traditional
Japanese way of thinking.” After such endorsements,
Ozawa does not disappoint and systematically sets out hisbold blueprint for the nation.
The book is divided into three sections, the first, “The Urgency
3

of Political Reform,” makes the argument for both politicaland electoral reform. Ozawa and his allies in the short lived
coalition largely managed to achieve the electoral reformoutlined in the book with the switch from the multi-seatconstituency system to a single seat one. He bemoans, “Thelack of real leadership is not only burdensome to our foreigncounterparts, it is also dangerous for Japan itself (page25).” To tackle this Ozawa sets out how the Office of thePrime Minster could be reformed and its power enhanced(something largely accomplished under PM Hashimoto’s
reforms). He also wants to change how the Diet andlawmakers work along with rewriting the role of bureaucrats
and how they interact with politicians. Additionally heoutlines ideas for reforming local government. To someextent various hues of these ideas have actually been
implement since the book was penned in 1993, althoughdespite various initiates bureaucrats still hold a relatively
powerful position in government.
In the second part of the book “Becoming A ‘Normal Nation,’”the author explains what he means by this phrase, defining
it as “a nation that willingly shoulders those responsibilities
regarded as natural in the international community. It does
not refuse such burdens on account of domestic politicaldifficulties. Nor does it take action unwillingly as a result of‘international pressure’ (page 94).” In the post Soviet era,
which had dawned with the demise of the USSR in 1991,
Ozawa sees Japan neglecting its international duties andobligations. He argues “The Gulf War revealed the myriad
frailties of the politics and government of our country (page45).”
Ozawa declares, “It is time that Japan recognizes that it is
an important participant in this new age in internationalsociety. We have to face the demands of the new age headon and plan the best course of action (page 121).” Japanneeds to open up its domestic markets while its militaryneeds to participate more fully in UN missions. In 1994 it
was controversial to state, “It is my view that even under thecurrent constitution, Japan is able to offer the SDF to theUnited Nations as a reserve force for operations overseas(page 109).” He also believes that Japan must face up to thehistoric harm it committed during the war, he writes, “Wecannot deny the part aggression has played in our history
in Asia (page 128).”
In the third and final section, “The Five Freedoms” Ozawa
outlines his vision for a different kind of Japan based moreon individual rather than group values and obligations. Thissection is also full or appealing populist ideas and mirrors
the policies Ozawa, as chief election strategist, offered the
public before the historic August 2009 landslide victoryof his party. The five freedoms of the title are “freedom
from Tokyo,” “freedom from companies,” “freedom fromoverwork,” “freedom from ageism and sexism,” and“freedom from regulations.” Each has its own separate
chapter in which Ozawa elaborates his ideas and explains
the need for change. He declares, “If we can achieve these
five freedoms, we will release our citizens from their socialand political shackles and begin to build a society that truly
values the individual (page 156).”
4

Even two decades on his ideas remain refreshing and hemanages to identify some of the key problems which still,
to varying degrees, plague Japan today. In 1993 when
the original Japanese edition came out the book seemedvisionary and even now it still retains a certain politicalresonance. The principles, ideas and philosophy laid out inthis work have guided Ozawa and shaped Japanese politicalpolicy and discourse to the present. Senator Jay Rockefeller,
captures the essence of the book stating Ozawa “seeks a‘Japanese dream’ to rival the ‘American dream,’” adding, “…
at the heart of Ozawa’s ‘New Japan’ is the individual (page17).”

Strong Arm Restoration[剛腕維新]
by Ichiro Ozawa [小沢一郎]Kadokawa Shoten [角川書店], 2006, 267 pages, 1600
yen, ISBN:9784046210883
Review by Fumiko Halloran
StrongArm
Restoration(Gowan Ishin) is a collection ofnewspaper columns written
by Ichiro Ozawa that first appeared in the Evening Fuji [夕刊フジ] newspaper between 2003 and 2006. His weekly column
touches on politics, the economy, foreign policy, education,and crime. As for the book’s title, “Strong Arm” [剛腕] is anexpression with which Ozawa is closely associated as it reflects
his sometimes arm-twisting political manoeuvres. He admits
he has to try harder to be more consensus oriented if he is tohead a party that covers a spectrum of political philosophy
and ideology and one day lead the nation. The “Restoration”[維新] part of the title refers to the “Meiji Restoration,” a theme
Ozawa often uses to liken himself to the Meiji leaders whotransformed the nation from the feudalistic Shogunate’s rule
to a modern nation.
A constant theme in his writings is Ozawa’s distrust of
Junichiro Koizumi, who was prime minister from 2001 to
2006, overlapping the period in which the columns were
written. Ozawa attacks the political direction pushed by the
Koizumi administration, sometimes bordering on personal
attacks. His criticism of specific issues such as taxes, pensions,and privatization may be valid but he rarely proposes his own
ideas beyond moral indignation.
This book makes the reader wonder if Ozawa can step outsideof his obsession with contrasting himself against those whoare in power either in his own party or the opposition Liberal
Democratic Party. He advocates high ethical and moral
standards for politicians, but he himself is mired in dubious
real estate dealings that are reported in the press and resulted
in his current indictment.

Issue 35 Volume 6 Number 5 (October 2011)

the Foreign Correspondents’ Club in Tokyo at which all isrevealed. It is the Japanese public which is exposed as theunwitting victim, oblivious to police excesses and media
complicity.
An utterly broken and betrayed man, Takeda lets rip at theend of the film for a full six minutes. Exhausted and dejected
in a prison cell, he delivers an almost Shakespeareansoliloquy damning the Japanese police force and justifying
his submissiveness by explaining that “no dog can survive
by disobeying his master.” The absolute contempt shownby the police as described by Takeda leaves the viewer
indignant; the camera pulls away from Takeda until he is no
more than a tiny speck floundering in a vast prison.

Confessions of a Dog [ポチの告白]
directed by Gen Takahashi [高橋玄]Japanesque: The
JapanesePrint
in the Era of
Impressionism

2006, 195 minutes
Review by Susan Meehan“In Japan there are two things you should never try to
oppose – the Emperor and the police!”
Gen Takahashi’s Confessions of a Dog is a powerful, grim
indictment of the Japanese police force based on Takahashi’s
own experiences of the police and the work of his friend
Yu Terasawa, a freelance journalist working in Japan who
writes about police misconduct. Lasting three hours and
15 minutes it does seem a long film, but this is worth itgiven the level of detail, characterisation and display ofpolice transgressions from blackmail to sexual harassment
to claiming false expenses to staged drug arrests. It is set in
1999/2000 and has a grainy quality to it which lends it thefeel of a documentary.
Completed in 2005, the film was only released in late 2009
and tells the story of a modest policeman by the name of
Takeda, superbly played by Shun Sugata (菅田俊). A hulking
bear of a man, Takeda works at a koban, mini-roadside police
station. Diffident and biddable, his meekness is recognisedby the appallingly corrupt police captain Mie played by
Gen Idemitsu (出光 元), who lures Takeda into joining thecriminal investigation department as a detective.
Indebted to Idemitsu for this unexpected promotion andunable to turn down his superior’s commands, Takeda
becomes embroiled in a murky tangle of police deals fromwhich he cannot extricate himself and falls from grace very
publicly.
Takeda continues his extraordinary evolution from moral
family-oriented cop to one who abuses his authority andbegins cavorting with 16-year old girls. Spiralling out ofcontrol, he dutifully accepts his final role of scapegoat as hetakes the blame for homicide, embezzlement, bribery andbringing disgrace to the police.
The freelance investigative journalist Kusama, on a mission
to unveil police corruption, is barred from Takeda’s trial.
Armed with plenty of incriminating evidence against thepolice, he organises a compelling press conference atIssue 35 Volume 6 Number 5 (October 2011)by Karin Breuer
Fine Arts Museumof San Francisco, Del
Monico Books-Prestel,
2010, 156 pages
including catalogue
and index, copiously
illustrated in colour, US$34.95
Review by Sir Hugh Cortazzi
This book is much more than a catalogue (see note 1). Karin
Breuer outlines firstly the origins and development of theJapanese prints. The author then describes the aesthetics ofukiyo-e. This is followed by a discussion of “European Artists
and Japonisme.” The last chapter is devoted to “the Japanesestyle in American Printmaking.”
The contents of the first chapter will be familiar to anyone
who has some knowledge of the history of Japanese prints
and most of the prints reproduced are well known, but it
provides a useful summary for someone new to the subject.
In the second chapter the author outlines some of the
distinctive features of composition in Japanese prints suchas “the division of the composition into sections or simple
geometric areas.” The author notes that “the upliftingof the background and the strong use of diagonals areevident in many early prints.” Of landscape prints it is notedthat “In keeping with the Japanese love of decoration andpattern, they were often composed as interlocking areas ofland and sea.” “Another favourite device was the bird’s eye
perspective…often combined with a high horizon line.”
The way in which Japanese artists made effective use of
silhouettes is also emphasized. Among the prints reproducedin this section the following prints, by Hiroshige of a festival at
the Great Shrine at Izumo, and by Hokuei of the actor Arashi
Rikan II , seemed to me particularly striking:5

Another artist much influenced by Japanese prints was Mary
Cassatt whose woman bathing, a famous colour aquatint,
was thought to be greatly influenced by Utamaro [喜多川 歌
麿].

Breuer in commenting on the Japanese use of patterns inukiyo-e includes a reproduction of the following print by
Kuniyoshi Utagawa [歌川 国芳] of a woman standing on averanda wearing “an extravagant black kimono.”
I was not familiar with Henri Rivière’s lithograph series entitledThirty-six views of the Eiffel Tower featured on the cover of thebook. Here is a reproduction of another in this series showing
the river Seine:

Anyone familiar with the history of Japonisme will be familiar
with the influence which Japanese prints had on artists suchas Whistler, Van Gogh, Manet, Monet, Degas and Toulouse
Lautrec. This lithograph of 1899 by Toulouse Lautrec isjustifiably famous.

6

In the chapter devoted to the Japanese style in American
Print making the author gives pride of place to this 1906 print
entitled The Wave, Moonrise by B.J.O.Nordfeldt which was soclearly influenced by Hokusai’s wave.

Issue 35 Volume 6 Number 5 (October 2011)This woodcut by Alice Smith entitled Moonflower and
Hawksmoth is obviously inspired by Japanese flower
painting.

Departures (おくりびと)
directed by Yojiro Takita [滝田洋二郎], 2008, 131 minutes
Review by Michael SullivanFrank Morley Fletcher who came to California from Englandin 1923 had been captivated by Japanese prints when
he was a student in Paris in the later 1880s, the height ofJaponisme. Breuer includes a reproduction of a 1900 print ofBrotherswater in the Lake District which has elements clearlyinspired by Japanese prints but so does the following 1932
woodcut Mount Shasta in California.

This is a book which anyone interested in Japanese prints
and their influence on western art will want to have. It can befound on the internet at under £15 making it a good buy.
Note 1
Published on the occasion of the exhibition with the sameas the book title and organised by the author at the Legionof Honor Gallery in San Francisco, October 16, 2010-January
9, 2011.

Issue 35 Volume 6 Number 5 (October 2011)

Departures is based on an autobiographical book by Aoki
Shinmon [新門青木] and features Masahiro Motoki [本木雅弘] as Daigo Kobayashi, a cellist who after losing his job
moves back to his hometown and starts a new job helping‘departures.’ In 2009 it won an Academy Award for Best
Foreign Language Film as well as numerous other awards
such as the 32nd Japan Academy Prize for Best Film and the30th Yokohama Film Festival for Best Film.
The most striking features of this movie are the cinematic
scenery and haunting musical score, all of the compositions
are by Joe Hisaishi [久石 譲], who has also composed
the music for many Studio Ghibli films. The music flows
beautifully with Yojiro Takita’s scenes such as nature, sunsets
and a cellist playing his instrument next to rice fields. The
film portrays with extreme tenderness the passing awayof loved ones, how the families cherished them, whilereminding us of the reasons for living.
Daigo and his wife Mika, played by Ryoko Hirosue [広末涼子], move to Daigo’s family home, his parent’s café, inYamagata after his orchestra is disbanded. His mother had
died previously while he had been abroad and his father
had abandoned the family when Daigo was six years
old. Looking for work he finds an advertisement for what
appears to be some kind of travel agency, on arriving for thejob interview he is given the job almost immediately andpaid for turning up. He finds out that his new job, working
for the boss Sasaki played by Tsutomu Yamazaki [山崎 努],
involves encoffinment; the art of preparing the dead fortheir departure from this life.
Daigo feels embarrassed by his new job, he tells his wife ina vague manner that it is a ceremonial job and keeps quiet
in front of old acquaintances. His caution is shown to be
prudent when an old friend finds out and refuses to let his
family talk to Daigo, and eventually Mika finds out too andleaves, finding his touch to be filthy. Meanwhile, throughhis job he encounters many kinds of deaths, the young, theold, accidents, suicides, and using their delicate care andrespect for the body, he and Sasaki bring the dead back to
7

a life like resemblance which provokes outpourings of grief,
anger and regret from the different family members. The
departure of a deceased person reflects not just a time of
goodbyes, but also of remembrance. Daigo is touched by
the sincere emotions he receives from parents, spouses, etc,
who thank him and Sasaki for the care and beauty they giveto the deceased. Eventually the moment arrives when his
wife returns; she has news for him and wants him to quit hisjob. Before he can answer his phone rings, another person
has died, someone they both know.

The animated characters themselves looked similar to thoseof the superior Studio Ghibli but the similarity ends there.
The film failed to capture my interest or imagination anddidn’t develop the characters sufficiently. It seemed lacking;the plot was rather weak. Admittedly I was not the target
demographic and the children in the cinema seem to have
loved it. This film was shown at the Premiere Japan 2011
event at the Barbican.

The film touches upon a number of delicate issues, the griefcaused by death, the taboo nature of those who care forthe dead as well as the importance of family and life itself.
Daigo goes through a journey himself, discovering his pastand learning about living. There are striking scenes such as
the apartment of Sasaki which in comparison to his job isfilled with life, and his motto that life is eating, both of whichhave a profound impact on Daigo. (This fantastic movie wasalso reviewed in Issue 20)

Nuclear Dawn, The
Atomic Bomb from the
Manhattan Project to theCold Warby James P. Delgado, Osprey
Publishing, Colchester,
2009, 216 pages, copious
illustrations, £20, ISBN 978-184603-396-4
Review by Sir Hugh Cortazzi

Legend of theMillenium Dragon
directed by Hirotsugu
Kawasaki (川﨑博嗣), 2011,
98 minutes
Review by Susan MeehanThis anime opens withscenes of verdant ancientJapan. Amidst scenes oftemples, shrines, mountains,
paddy fields and old towns
samurai,
representing
humanity, are fighting hugemonsters with blazing red eyes otherwise known as “oni.”
One is enormous, rivalling Godzilla in terms of size. A monk by
the name of Gen’un strikes down the “oni” with supernatural
strength as they attempt to destroy his temple.
We are then transported back to the present and to schoolboys playing computer games. One is no ordinary school
boy; Jun Tendo, singled out by his birth mark, turns out tobe a Harry Potter-esque saviour destined to bring peace towarring Japan which we’ve just had a glimpse of, and is sent
back to Gen’un’s era.
Time travelling Jun, quite a shy boy really, turns out to bea descendant of the Magatama clan. As preordained hewakes up the Orochi, or flying dragon. Orochi will respond to
Jun’s desires and Jun has to decide which side to join in thisperennial battle of good and evil without being swayed by
the monk on the one side or the girl he falls in love with on
the other. It is a treacherous decision which Jun has to take.
The occasional flashback to present day Japan shows Jun’sfather as a school boy, having to stand up to bullies and lateron as a teacher, dying in an attempt to save a boy at a railway
crossing. It is this valiant and noble lineage that has formed
Jun.

This book provides an illustrated and factual guide to thedevelopment of nuclear weapons. It starts with an accountof research into the nature of atoms. This is followed by asummary of the work which led up to the manufacture of
the first atomic bombs in the Manhattan project. The next
chapters deal with the bombs (‘little boy’ and ‘fat man’) andtheir delivery over Japan in August 1945. Separate chapterson Hiroshima and Nagasaki describe the devastation causedby the bombs on the two targets. The book then summarises
the “reaction and response” to the bombs. The two atomic
bombs were just the beginning. The Americans pressed onwith their research and the H-bomb was developed andtested at Bikini atoll in July 1946 against a number of old
warships. The next chapter is entitled nuclear proliferationand deterrence. The final chapter is on the legacies of thebomb.
Anyone who wants a simple illustrated guide to thedevelopment of atomic weapons will find this a usefulbook, but its discussion of nuclear proliferation is confined
to describing the Russian, British and French developmentof their own atomic weapons. The fact that China, India,
Pakistan and Israel (although this is not publicly admitted by
the Israeli government) are all now nuclear weapons states
is not mentioned. There is no reference to North Korea
or to Iran. The discussion of deterrence is cursory and theimportant nuclear non-proliferation treaty is not discussed.
While the reasons for the decision to use the bombs on
Japan in August 1945 are outlined there is no in-depth
discussion of the moral and strategic issues involved. But
in a short illustrated account of the development of atomic
weapons it is perhaps unreasonable to expect all theseissues to be covered.

Issue 35 Volume 6 Number 5 (October 2011)