Director Lu Chuan, being an army personnel himself has beautifully captured the aftermath of the second Sino-Japanese war in the film City of Life and Death. The film depicts the tyranny and atrocities inflicted by Japanese soldiers on the soldiers and the civilians of Nanjing, the Chinese capital.
The film transforms you to the 1930’s. The director has used hues of back and white to depict the bygone era. Imperial Japanese Army personnel massacre the civilians of the Nanjing (which is also known as Nanking). Thousands of children, women, children, senior citizens and wounded soldiers take refuge in a safety zone. The Japanese soldiers forcefully attack this camp and sexually exploit the women. In this Nanking Massacre, thousands of Chinese soldiers and civilians are killed and brutally beheaded.
However, Kadokawa, a Japenese soldier feels the pain of the Chinese and the agony they face is depicted through his facial expressions. Though he is a part of the crime, he is disgusted by his men’s actions. It seems as though the film is captured through his eyes. Kadokawa’s emotional turmoil is revealed as the Japanese soldiers celebrate their victory over the conquest of Nanjing. He, in the end, realises that ‘Life is more difficult than death.’ In order to escape from the guilt he shoots himself.
Nakaizumi Hideo as Kadokawa Masao has done a brilliant job by bringing out the helplessness, his confidence as a warrior and also as a close observer.
The camera has captured the meticulous elements of humanity especially the brutality and also the innocence of the civilians.
The story is deep and the dialogues, though less are thought provoking.