User Reviews

It turns out that Toho Studios - the guys who made all those GODZILLA movies back in the day - are still going strong in Japan, making this lengthy and sometimes epic-feeling WW2 movie that was undoubtedly based on a true story. What's surprising about this film is that it's a US-Japanese co-production that strives to show both sides of the conflict without ever demonising one or the other.

As a film it recalls the likes of LETTERS FROM IWO JIMA and although it's not quite as good as that Eastwood classic, it's well worth a watch for WW2 fans. I loved the way that the Japanese soldiers are humanised rather than just being painted as vengeful, almost supernatural demons as in American war films. Yutaka Takenouchi is a former TV actor who has gone on to success recently in SHIN GODZILLA and he does very well in an emotive part here.

The film delivers a warts-and-fall portrayal of military might and the battles are less gung-ho than resolutely realistic in terms of violence and effect. Certainly there are flaws throughout but these aren't enough to detract from the experience overall which strives to show the complexity of the situation and does so effectively. I was also pleased to see a couple of familiar Hollywood faces in the form of Daniel Baldwin and Treat Williams drafted into the tale.

I do not usually write reviews on IMDb.com, but after viewing this movie (and especially after seeing its rating on IMDb), I've decided to take the proverbial plunge....

"Oba: the Last Samurai" is based on the true story of Captain Sakae Oba, who fought during the Battle of Saipan in the 18th Imperial Japanese Army Regiment. After surviving the brutal "Banzai Charge" of July 7 (in which U.S. Army and Marine units fought against nearly 5,000 Japanese soldiers in pitched hand-to-hand combat), Captain Oba retreated into the mountainous interior of Saipan with 46 other Japanese soldiers and nearly 200 Japanese civilians. As the movie eloquently depicts, Oba waged a remarkably successful guerrilla campaign against the U.S. troops stationed on Saipan (for which he earned the nickname "The Fox"). As the movie also depicts, Captain Oba battled not only against the Americans but also against starvation, disease, and the overwhelming emotional chaos of war. Finally, on December 1st 1945, Captain Oba and his surviving men surrendered to the U.S. military. Oba was repatriated to Japan, where his memorable struggle on Saipan was later turned into a popular novel.

Like any historically based film, "Oba" contains its share of historical inaccuracies and dramatizations. In particular, the Korean, Okinawan, and especially native Chamoru civilians who were also present on Saipan (and who suffered just as terribly as the Japanese civilians) are virtually ignored in this film. But in comparison to other WWII films (and especially to "Windtalkers," another WWII film set during the Battle of Saipan), "Oba" successfully depicts the desperate fighting that occurred on the island from both the American AND Japanese perspectives.

In summary, I highly recommend "Oba: the Last Samurai" for anyone who is interested in the Battle of Saipan or the Pacific War. This movie comes as close as almost any other movie or TV series I have seen (American or Japanese) to capturing the sheer brutality of the fighting between the American and Japanese forces in the Pacific. And it deserves a much higher rating than the 6.2 average it currently holds on IMDb.com.