The Human Condition (Parts One and Two)

This film (drama)Also known as人間の條件，is aJapanProducerwomen sex，At1959Released in year 。The dialogue language isJapanese, Mandarin Chinese，Current Douban rating8.8(For reference only)。

Based on the original work "The Human Condition" by Gomikawa Junpei. It reflects the experiences of Japanese colonizers in Northeast China (Manchuria). The director takes a humanitarian stance to reflect on the impacts of war on both sides. The story is set in Manchuria in 1943, during the latter part of the Pacific War, focusing on the male protagonist, Kaji, who struggles throughout his life for his humanitarian beliefs against Japanese militarism. First part: Pure Love Chapter Second part: Anger Chapter Third part: Nostalgia Chapter Fourth part: War Clouds Chapter Fifth part: Escape from Death Chapter Sixth part: Wandering in the Wilderness Chapter The story background is set in Manchuria in 1943, telling the story of Kaji, who opposes Japanese militarism during the Pacific War, and struggles throughout his life for his humanitarian beliefs. It is divided into six parts, totaling about nine hours. The first and second parts depict the failure of Kaji's humanitarian reforms towards Chinese workers and explore the conscience of colonizers. The third and fourth parts describe Kaji's experiences in the military, witnessing the tragic circumstances of his compatriots forced to fight. The fifth and sixth parts talk about Kaji, now a deserter in northern Manchuria, and his death due to his resistance. Episodes One and Two In 1943, Manchuria, Kaji works in the investigation department of a mining company. He compares the production strength of Japanese and American mining and realizes that Japan will inevitably be defeated in the future. In the report he submitted to the company, he criticized the inhumane exploitation of Chinese workers at the mining site. This report was acknowledged by the company, leading him to be sent to the site. After marrying Michiko, Kaji took office. With the assistance of his predecessor, Oshida, Kaji attempted to implement labor management reforms with a humanitarian approach. Japanese management personnel opposed Kaji's reforms, leading to constant strikes. He faced problems that they could not solve. The military captured farmers resisting Japanese aggression in China and abused them as prisoners, calling them special workers forced into labor at the mines. Kaji was ordered by the military police to manage them. He made every effort to treat them humanely within the permissible range, which heightened the hatred of the Japanese site managers and the military police. Many special workers fled. As a result, the military police captured those who did not wish to escape and executed them. When the military police killed the third person, Kaji could no longer hold back and protested. When the military police brandished a knife at Kaji, the leader of the hundreds of special workers he had previously guarded, Old Wang, stepped forward to threaten the military police. The military police halted the killings but soon, Kaji was arrested, tortured, expelled from the company, and immediately drafted into the military. Episodes Three and Four In mid-winter, Kaji was assigned to a garrison in northern Manchuria. The forced training left him utterly exhausted, and he also had to endure bullying from the veterans. However, he stood out both in physical fitness and shooting skills, quickly becoming an important soldier in the squad while also standing up for the younger soldiers. Kaji's friends, who were being made to suffer because their brother was a leftist, and Kobayashi, influenced by a letter from his wife scolding him for being foolish about family, were also struggling. There was also a 40-year-old veteran who had been conscripted. Kaji helped Shinjou escape to the Soviet Union, while Kobayashi committed suicide in the restroom. Kaji's wife traveled a great distance to visit him at the unit. They received special permission to spend a night in the tool shed together. Later, following the entry of the Soviet Union into the war, Kaji's unit was completely annihilated by Soviet tank forces. Only Kaji and a few others survived. Episodes Five and Six In northern Manchuria, Kaji and the remaining soldiers fled south. On the way, they encountered fleeing men, women, and children. Although they helped them, many succumbed to hunger and fatigue. Kaji endured hardships until he arrived at a pioneering village still inhabited by old Japanese people and women. He prepared to fight the Soviet army there, but when Japanese women shouted, "Don't fight here!" they began a life in the prisoner of war camp. Kaji deeply despised the despicable little man Torihara in the camp. Later, he was falsely accused and punished with hard labor. After enduring hard labor in the forest, he returned to the camp. When he learned that the weak soldiers he had protected were killed by Torihara without consequence, Kaji fell into despair. He killed Torihara and then escaped from the camp. Wandering through the snow-covered wilderness, he reminisced about his wife and gradually became frostbitten. Evaluation of the Film A director who reflects on human responsibility from a humanitarian perspective is great. Both sides in war are human; within every person, there are parts of evil (Satan) and humanity (faith in redemption). Kaji's conscious resistance to war is a transcendence of humanity and a shift in perspective after witnessing brutality. It is not a narrow unilateral stance but a reflection of conscience twisted by the state of war, leaving space for the viewer to reconsider the contradictions between humanitarian goodwill and succumbing to evil. Behind-the-scenes Production In the history of Japanese cinema, this work is regarded as one of the representative anti-war films. The film has a profound meaning, reflecting the heavy sentiments of the Japanese during World War II and raising many questions regarding their "conscience." It tells the ideals and faults of Japanese people during that era, a blend of dreams and disillusionment, coercion and sincerity, embodying the complex psychology of trying to live as human beings as best as possible. These forced to act as lackeys of militarism sometimes resisted, sometimes advocated humanitarianism, thus their position was extraordinarily painful. This stands in stark contrast to current Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's visits to the Yasukuni Shrine. This film was selected as one of the 200 notable films in Japan and won fifth and tenth place in the 1959 Kinema Junpo's top ten films.