Description: Winner of the Grand Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival, and banned in its native country, Jiang Wen’s ravishingly photographed anti-war epic is set in 1945 in a Japanese-occupied rural Chinese village. Wen stars as Ma Dasan, a peasant, who, one night at gunpoint, is compelled to shelter two prisoners. One is a captured Japanese soldier who wants to be killed, the other his Chinese interpreter, who wants to stay alive. As the days turn into months, Dasan and his fellow villagers keep their unwanted guests hidden from the Japanese forces, while deciding whether or not to execute their captives. A plan to exchange the men for grain leads to the film’s harrowing and devastating climax.
Nice one Devils on the Doorstep Devils on the Doorstep
Amazing film- right from the start the action is subtle but keeps the viewer fully occupied. Trying to find out what these two Japanese solidiers are doing. There are moments of humour - especially the interrogation scene- well worth watching twice
War is bad. we live in an age where we are compelled to gush in a restaurant when the staff is doing no more or less than its job and we tip entirely out of proportion to the level of service. we do this because most service is appalling. the norm isn't just below what we remember; it's below what it actually was.
this is a competently made film. it is well shot. well acted. and its point, however tried and true, is trite and tired for all that. the absurdity of war is plowed ground. catch-22 did it. slaughterhouse five. MASH. so many others. this film is in that tradition. it does not surpass them. it does not even equal them. it is merely "good."
the resolution to this story, which has apparently caught just right so many who have enjoyed it, left me cold. it felt tacked on and forced. it did not feel like it tied everything together just so--the callback to which it referred from earlier in the film was itself a strained tangent that, upon the conclusion, feels not like an organic and sensible emergence of story, but that it, too, had been wedged senselessly in there for no other reason than that it COULD be called back as an internal reference.
absurdity during wartime was the obvious goal here. cruelty is absurd. bravery is absurd. cowardice is absurd. everything that has meaning outside of the context of war is utterly absurd during war. i got that. i got that loud and clear. but it wasn't exactly hard to get. i'd gotten precisely that countless times before. not including the daily news.
the biggest problem here with this film is this--war isn't absurd so much as this film's depiction is silly. the sudden turns that are meant to ratchet up the involvement instead disengaged me, first by not being funny, not ever--oh, i GOT the jokes, who wouldn't?--second by not being shocking when it so desperately wanted to be, and third, by just not being authentic to those oppressively dark times; the whimsy was cheapening.
i found the film tedious, mostly. but i understand it had 40 minutes trimmed, so i know it could have been worse. as for china's ban of this film? the inner party apparently felt that the depiction of the japanese was too soft-hearted. oddly, having more than a passing knowledge of the imperial army's atrocities, i am inclined to agree that it was, though banning such a film for such a reason is ludicrous.
for such a determinedly sincere farce, this film played it very safe.
that is my biggest complaint: silly is safe.
Brilliant Dark-Comedy War Film: Not For Everyone! When I first viewed "Devils on the Doorstep," I thought, well, okay, is this what all the hype is about? I have seen more graphic and brutal films on war than this! And quite frankly, I probably would have given the film 3-stars instead of 5-stars. However, I decided to watch it again, and found the film more than lived up to all of its hype. I am surprised that this film has received so many 5-star ratings--but maybe the other reviewers saw something in this film the I saw too! As a word of caution, however, this is not a film for everyone. For one, the brutality of the war Japan waged in China in WWII is not given full weight, and secondly, the films most unusual ending seem a bit too bizarre.
Yet, it was on the second viewing that I really liked what director Jiang Wen did with this film. You want constant brutality? Well there are enough documentary films which depict the true horror of Japans occupation of China. But what was it about this film that captured my attention so much upon second viewing? Well for starters, I liked the way the director weaved a film that shows a little bit of humanity in the film. Sure, Ma Dasan could have killed his captors whenever he wanted to. But he did not. Maybe there is a morality tale here?
Especially considering that the Japanese soldier held captive wanted to be killed, or allowed to die with honor. After all, Japanese soldiers' lives were forfeit to the emperor by default. Moreover, to be taken prisoner was considered shameful. And considering all of the suffering that the Japanese inflicted on the Chinese during WWII, the killing of the Japanese soldier would have been no big deal. But the director does not take the viewer to these oft treaded waters that so many films that pass for cinema usually take the viewer.
And this is one of the reasons I liked this film. The Chinese do not dehumanize themselves as the Japanese do in this film. No, the Chinese depicted in the film have the moral high ground. And it is a shame that the government of China decided to place director Jiang Wen under house arrest and ban any further films by this talented director, because he did not TELL the viewer how brutal the Japanese were, he shows the viewer this in the film. [Jiang Wen also portrays the captor Ma Dasan in this film]. The film itself takes place in China during the closing months of WWII, and the invading Japanese army occupies a small village in a northern area of a China.
Although the memory of the Second World War has lessened in its impact in the USA, when one realizes the enormous human losses and suffering the Japanese inflicted on their fellow Asians, and the Chinese in particular, then one can understand why the Chinese do not allow this war to rest and go quietly into the history books. Enormous suffering was incurred against the Chinese. In the film, two Japanese soldiers are held hostage by a Chinese peasant named Ma Dasan. Both of the prisoners are first held in bags, and then imprisoned: All within easy reach of a fortified Japanese position. One of the hostages [A Japanese soldier] wants to be killed, while the other one, his Chinese interpretor working alongside the Japanese army, wants to live. Those around Ma Dasan want the soldiers executed.
However, Ma Dasan has his own plan. And eventually a decision is reached, which has horrifying consequences. One of the things about this film is that it is more or less a drama and semi-comedy to some extent for the first hour and a half. But the ending half hour is where some very unexpected events will occur. The film is shot in black and white, with Mandarin Chinese, and Japanese language. English subtitles are provided. It is a great film! and a must have for your cinema collection. And once again, the film is not for everyone, so rent it first. But for those who like Asian cinema, the film comes highly recommended! [Stars: 4.5]
Six Stars (my wish) I could not give a better review to this movie. ( no more stars available to give). after viewing it, I thought it was indeed movies like this one what makes collecting them worthwhile. The quality of this film rests above the accomplishment of its fundamental subject and inclination, it goes beyond conventions, delivering an extremely creative approach to the delicate and still latent issues regarding the Japanese invation of mainland Asia. This movie has one of the most dramatic and well structured endings I have ever seen.... it wraps everything up in the most masterly way. Every piece falls in place, either with uttermost dignity or brutality.
Europeans have well assimilated the plain facts of WWII. Dutch and Germans often mock eachother, although it is in generally meant as joke. This is not the case of Asia, It is still, sadly, much more "emotion" than pragmatism and honest understanding of history. This movie shows, the inner gohsts of the ruthless Japanese Asian conquest campaign.
Forgotten Classic For any fan of Kurosawa, or more recent Chinese Cinema, this will prove a delightful discovery. Sumptuous scenery around the Great Wall provides the backdrop for this most-forgotten of Wartime theatres. The sense of claustrophobia and at times, sheer terror, is well-portrayed by a cast unknown to Western viewers. A lesson in betrayal and lost trust. Highly recommended.
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