Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence

The Resource Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence
Label
Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence
Statement of responsibility
a Jeremy Thomas production ; a Nagisa Oshima film ; screenplay by Nagisa Oshima with Paul Mayersberg ; producer, Jeremy Thomas ; directed by Nagisa Oshima ; National Film Trustee Company ; made in association with Antares-Nova N.V., Recorded Picture Company, Oshima Productions, Asahi National Broadcasting Co. Ltd. and Broadbank Investments Limited
Contributor
Actor
Composer
Director
Producer
Screenwriter
Subject
Genre
Language
  • eng
  • jpn
  • eng
  • eng
  • eng
Summary
In a Japanese prison camp on Java in 1942, two British officers, John Lawrence and Jack Celliers, encounter camp commander Yonoi and his sergeant Hara. Things had been going pretty well, until charismatic, rebellious Celliers arrived. Yonoi is a devotee of the samurai ideal; neither he nor Hara can understand the stoic way in which the British prisoners accept their situation of defeat. Lawrence speaks Japanese, and ceaselessly tries to mediate between the prisoners and their overseers, translating both the words and the values of the two races. Celliers' attitude, however, is more comprehensible to Yonoi. He and Celliers arrive at a sort of détente, based on an admiration for the other, but this eventually turns into a contest of wills as the camp's carefully nurtured equilibrium is destroyed
Member of
Cataloging source
TEFMT
Characteristic
videorecording
Credits note
Director of photography, Toichiro Narushima ; production designer, Jusho Toda ; music, Ryuichi Sakamoto ; editor, Tomoyo Oshima ; interpreter, Didi Dickson
Dewey number
791.43/72
Intended audience
Rated R: Contains violence and intense emotional scenes
Language note
In English or Japanese dialogue with optional English subtitles
LC call number
PN1997
LC item number
.M47 2010
PerformerNote
David Bowie (Celliers), Tom Conti (Lawrence), Ryuichi Sakamoto (Yonoi), Takeshi [Kitano] (Hara), Jack Thompson (Hicksley)
Runtime
124
Series statement
Criterion collection
Series volume
535
Target audience
adult
Technique
live action
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