With the largest production budget in the history of Chinese cinema, totaling $90 million, director Zhang Yimou was given the task of revisiting the atrocities committed in Nanking during World War II. His challenge: translating his interpretation of the horrific event to the big screen.
Zhang's movie, "The Flowers of War," is set during the 1937 Sino-Japanese war, focusing on John (Christian Bale), an American mortician, who must prepare the deceased priest of a Nanking Catholic church for burial. John finds himself caught in the role of the accidental hero, eventually posing as a priest in order to buy time and craft a plan to help a group of schoolgirls and prostitutes seeking sanctuary in the church escape the ravaged Chinese city.
While the film garnered widespread attention for its extravagant budget, American lead actor and official Chinese financial support, the director's portrayal of the historical events of Nanking was rarely mentioned. While a few figures are alluded to during the film, such as John's moral resemblance to John Rabe, a German who established a safe zone in Nanking, which saved thousands, most of the hard facts are brushed aside.
Zhang distances himself from the atrocities by setting most of the film within the Catholic Church, shying away from a portrayal of the grotesque crimes committed during the invasion. Yimou's choice of a neutral setting reveals his directional inhibitions.
Given Zhang's obvious reticence in "Flowers," there are still a couple of scenes that provide a stark contrast to the relatively peaceful setting of the Catholic Church. When the Japanese first invade the church, one of the officers yells "We've got virgins!" as they wildly chase the young schoolgirls around the halls. Zhang gives a particularly gruesome portrayal of the brutality of the Japanese soldiers in another scene that graphically depicts a gang rape of two prostitutes who attempt to flee the church.
Other than these two intensely explicit scenes, Zhang prefers to stick to the Hollywood melodrama milieu that he is known for. This approach, accompanied by stunning visuals with particularly fine attention to the exterior, simplifies the film's outlook and prevents any deeper themes from developing.
While the reluctance to push the envelope may have come from fears of government censorship, the harsh residual emotions associated with Nanking still seem to be a limiting factor for commentary on the subject. Nanking has always provided a controversial topic for both Chinese and Japanese nationals, even 70 years after the Japanese atrocities were committed. The bulk of the controversy lies in the discrepancy in numbers of the Chinese killed during the Japanese occupation, and the hesitation of the Japanese to accept responsibility for the full weight of the atrocities. Chinese estimates of the death toll are literally set in stone, with a looming "300,000" carved into the monument above the official memorial museum. This number can be compared with Japanese textbooks, which list much smaller death tolls or gloss over the issue entirely.
Unsurprisingly, no release dates are available online for Japanese audiences, although the film has already been released in China and is scheduled for release in the U.S. in late January. The simple plot relies on the star power of Christian Bale and multi-million dollar special effects and production values to present itself as a worthy big-screen production. "The Flowers of War" is not a call for the Japanese to admit their faults, but rather a souped-up propaganda tool. Zhang uses Hollywood style melodramatic conventions and a self-sacrificing battle scene glorifying Chinese soldiers to galvanize Chinese nationals and promote a sense of Chinese pride. "Flowers of War" is a weak and unnecessary re-visitation to 1937 Nanking, re-opening old wounds to little effect.
