Nanking (2007 film)

Plot

In the winter of 1937, the Japanese army occupied Nanking and killed over 300,000 and raped tens of thousands of Chinese people, one of human history's worst atrocities. In order to protect Chinese civilians, a small group of European and American expatriates, Western missionaries, professors, and businessmen banded together to save 250,000, risking their own lives.

The film describes the Nanking Massacre by reading from letters and diaries which shows the activities of John Rabe (Jürgen Prochnow), a German businessman, Robert O. Wilson (Woody Harrelson), the only surgeon remaining to care for legions of victims, and Minnie Vautrin (Mariel Hemingway), an educator who passionately defends the lives and honor of Nanking's women during the war time.

The film includes survivors who tell their own stories, the archival footage of the events, and the testimonies of Japanese soldiers who participated in the rampage.

Cast

Production

The film was conceptualized and funded by AOL Vice-Chairman Ted Leonsis. While on vacation during the Christmas of 2005 in St. Bart's, Leonsis read The Rape of Nanking after seeing the obituary for the book's author, Iris Chang. The book inspired Leonsis to research the massacre further and eventually led to his creation of the film project.

Leonsis had expressed his desire for the film to be released theatrically, as well as on DVD, television, and cable. He hopes to use local DVD sales as an advertising platform for businesses that want to break into the Chinese market. He also expressed interest in making the film available for free online, saying "We'll get a sponsor", "I'm not worried about piracy. I want people to share the movie."

Release and reaction

Nanking has received numerous positive reviews, including one from Reuters that says that the "beautifully crafted film...honors the highest calling of documentary filmmaking." It was accepted to the Sundance Film Festival in January, 2007 and nominated for the Grand Jury Prize (Documentary); the film was awarded honors for Documentary Editing. In 2008, this documentary was awarded the Peabody Award. Japanese right-wing nationalist filmmaker Satoru Mizushima called the film a "setup by China to control intelligence," and plans to release his own documentary, The Truth about Nanjing, in which the massacre is portrayed as merely political propaganda. On his blog, Nanking producer Ted Leonsis responded by saying: "Our film isn't an anti-Japanese film. It is an anti-war film."

In July 2007, the film premiered in Beijing and opened in China.

On November 19, 2007, Nanking was named by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences as one of 15 films on its documentary feature Oscar shortlist. It was not retained when the list was narrowed to the final five nominations.