Ah, Google says my comment is too long to be a comment.
Good recommendation! Interesting, emotional, and beautifully shot. I'm really glad I took your advice and went in totally blank. Very interesting seeing the plot unfold. I watched the trailer after the fact, which reveals waaaay too much. Seriously, what were they thinking.
I was quickly intrigued by the mystery of the suicide requests. Why do the samurai want to do it in this particular place? What is Hanshiro's motivation? Why do they keep showing that armor with the moustache? (I don't remember if it actually had one, but you know what I'm talking about.)
So even after the "suicide bluff" phenomenon was explained, by the time Motome's story was being told, I'd assumed that (a) the true story would be revealed over time, and (b) the Ii house guys, like me, didn't know what was really going on.
So that's part of why I didn't necessarily feel Motome got what he deserved. Why was he really there? Why would one more day make a difference? Why didn't he eat his snack? These questions were already running through my mind.
The other part is that, to my modern Americanized mind, the punishment just does not fit the crime. A horribly painful death because you tried to scam someone out of some change? No three strikes, no take-backs. Harsh. I generally don't like solving problems with violence.*
But "In Okinawa... honor very serious".
I get that there's the whole Japanese/bushido honor thing, which I guess is what the whole movie is questioning. You said you'd do it, so now you gotta do it. It's a disgrace to lie and make a mockery of a serious ceremony for money. And the Ii house was annoyed with all these time-sucking solicitors, making them get all dressed up and "places, everyone" for nothing.
Bottom line: The movie didn't make me feel more or less judgmental than usual, partly because I made assumptions about how the movie storytelling would go. On one hand, I judge things and people all the time and know I can be very critical of others. But at the same time I've heard enough stories, made enough mistakes and been in enough behavior-changing bad moods to usually keep in mind that you never know what other people have been through or are going through, and if you did know you'd probably be more forgiving. Please join me in gassho.
It's to the point that if a stranger punched me in the face for no apparent reason I think I'd be way more curious than angry, plus slightly amused by the randomness of it. What happened in his day or his life that would make him do so? Did I accidentally turn and hit him with my backpack, possibly spilling a drink? Do I look a lot like the guy who stole his girlfriend? Did he just decide I have a punchworthy face? Of course, if it turns out he's just drunk or racist or laughs about it with his friends after, it would all turn to anger and the guy would reap hell.
Anyway, good movie and good conversation starter. On the brighter side of it, I thought two scenes were particularly heartwarming: 1) Hanshiro and Miho sharing manju: "it tastes better with someone", and 2) Hanshiro having a ball with Kingo's first solid food ceremony.
Oh and one last note. When they showed the seppuku ceremony setup for Hanshiro, I thought "Ohhhh I get it, this guy is Motome's samurai buddy and this is the one way to find out who the second in the ceremony was that made Motome's death so much more painful and long than it had to be. He's about to get revenge and chop fools up." Yes, I assumed they were friends because facial hair does not add twenty years, people. When it turned out Hanshiro was old enough to be Motome's dad... I was like oh... okay... really? And checking just now, the actors' ages: Hanshiro (35), Motome (30), Miho (27). Yeah.
* There are times when even in my anti-violent mind, harsh punishments are called for... in the movies at least. Last night on Steve's recommendation I watched The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo (Part 1 of the Swedish series, not sure if that's the one he meant). I won't risk spoilers, but suffice to say there is a character you quickly hate and think "Okay, something terrible HAS to happen to this person, and whatever punishment they get, they deserve." It's a very different situation though because it's very clear what kind of person this character is, and there is no chance they have a justifying backstory or motivation. Mess that fool UP.
