Eagle of the Pacific (太平洋の鷲, Taiheiyo no washi), also known as Operation Kamikaze,[2] is a 1953 Japanese epic war film directed by Ishirō Honda, with special effects by Eiji Tsuburaya. The film dramatizes the start of Japan's military action in World War II, with an emphasis on the role of Isoroku Yamamoto.[5]

Eagle of the Pacific
Theatrical release poster
Directed byIshirō Honda
Written byShinobu Hashimoto[1]
Produced bySojiro Motoki[1]
StarringDenjirō Ōkōchi
CinematographyKazuo Yamada[1]
Edited byKoichi Iwashita[2]
Music byYūji Koseki[1]
Distributed byToho
Release date
  • October 21, 1953 (1953-10-21) (Japan)
Running time
119 minutes
CountryJapan
LanguageJapanese
Budget¥170 million[3]
Box office¥163.180 million[4]

Cast

edit

Production

edit

I hate war. This film is my tribute, a wish that the Japanese people will never experience this tragedy ever again.

— A statement from Ishirō Honda regarding the film.[7]

Toho intended Eagle of the Pacific to be an ambitious, Hollywood-style film. The studio used storyboarding to plan the visual effects sequences, a technique they would repeat on Godzilla.[8]

Stock footage was utilized extensively in Eagle of the Pacific; some sources claim that producer Sojiro Motoki secured approval for the film by offering to reuse action sequences from The War at Sea from Hawaii to Malaya. Thus, special effects director Eiji Tsuburaya's return to Toho was not a lavish affair. It is mostly rehashed footage augmented by a few new effects, and he only had a small crew. Many newspaper critics weren't fooled by Toho's trick photography, citing stock footage as evidence.[6]

Reception

edit

Eagle of the Pacific grossed 163 million yen, the third highest total for a Japanese film in 1953.[9]

Release

edit

The film was released on DVD in Japan in 2005.[10]

References

edit
  1. ^ a b c d Galbraith IV 2008, p. 96.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Nollen 2019, p. 192.
  3. ^ Ryfle & Godziszewski 2017, p. 72.
  4. ^ Kinema Junpo Best Ten 85th Complete History 1924-2011. Kinema Junpo. May 17, 2012. p. 104. ISBN 978-4873767550.
  5. ^ "太平洋の鷲". Agency for Cultural Affairs. Retrieved 27 December 2020.
  6. ^ a b Ryfle & Godziszewski 2017, p. 74.
  7. ^ Ryfle & Godziszewski 2017, p. 70.
  8. ^ Ragone, August (2007). Eiji Tsuburaya: master of monsters : defending the earth with Ultraman, Godzilla, and friends in the golden age of Japanese science fiction film. Chronicle Books. p. 31. ISBN 978-0-8118-6078-9.
  9. ^ Igarashi, Yoshikuni (2000). Bodies of memory: narratives of war in postwar Japanese culture, 1945-1970. Princeton University Press. p. 233. ISBN 978-0-691-04912-0.
  10. ^ Taiheiyō no washi (DVD video, 2005) [WorldCat.org]. OCLC 317586832 – via WorldCat.org.

Bibliography

edit
edit