Okinawa: The Afterburn

Okinawa: The Afterburn

2015 · 148 min · ★ 4.0 · Documentary

On April 1, 1945, the United States military launched its invasion of the main island of Okinawa, the start of a battle that was to last 12 weeks and claim the lives of some 240,000 people. This film depicts the Battle through the eyes of Japanese and American soldiers who fought each other on the same battlefield, along with Okinawa civilians who were swept up in the fighting. The film also depicts the history of discrimination and oppression forced upon Okinawa by the American and Japanese governments. Carrying up to the current controversy over the construction of a new base at Henoko, the film explores the root causes of the widespread disillusionment and anger expressed by many Okinawans. This ambitious documentary was directed by the American John Junkerman, long-term resident of Japan and Oscar-nominated documentary filmmaker. Okinawa: The Afterburn is a heartfelt plea for peace and an expression of deep respect for the unyielding spirit of the Okinawa people.

Directed by John Junkerman

Your Rating

Where to Watch

Rent or Buy

Make it a double feature

3h 56m together

Okinawa: The Afterburn

Nanking

Both from John Junkerman.

More from John JunkermanSee all →

Traces: The Kabul Museum 1988

Traces: The Kabul Museum 1988 · 2003

Traces: The Kabul Museum 1988

MovieDocumentaryHistory

The Kabul National Museum, once known as the "face of Afghanistan," was destroyed in 1993. We filmed the most important cultural treasures of the still-intact museum in 1988: ancient Greco-Roman art and antiquitied of Hellenistic civilization, as well as Buddhist sculpture that was said to have mythology--the art of Gandhara, Bamiyan, and Shotorak among them. After the fall of the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan in 1992, some seventy percent of the contents of the museum was destroyed, stolen, or smuggled overseas to Japan and other countries. The movement to return these items is also touched upon. The footage in this video represents that only film documentation of the Kabul Museum ever made.

The Old Man and the Sea

The Old Man and the Sea · 1990

The Old Man and the Sea

MovieDocumentary

The Constitution of Japan

The Constitution of Japan · 2005

The Constitution of Japan

MovieDocumentary

In 2005, sixty years after the end of World War II, the conservative Japanese government is pressing ahead with plans to revise the nation's constitution and jettison its no-war clause, Article 9. This documentary places the ongoing debate over the constitution in an international context:

Dream Window: Reflections on the Japanese Garden

Dream Window: Reflections on the Japanese Garden · 1992

Dream Window: Reflections on the Japanese Garden

MovieDocumentary

Exquisite exploration of landscape and Toru Takemitsu's music for a Japanese moss garden.

Nanking

Nanking · 2007

MovieDocumentaryDrama

The story of the rape of Nanking, one of the most tragic events in history. In 1937, the invading Japanese army murdered over 200,000 and raped tens of thousands of Chinese. In the midst of this horror, a small group of Western expatriates banded together to save 250,000. Nanking shows the tremendous impact individuals can make on the course of history.

Noam Chomsky: Distorted Morality

Noam Chomsky: Distorted Morality · 2003

Noam Chomsky: Distorted Morality

MovieDocumentary

In this remarkable documentary, Noam Chomsky offers a riveting but devastating critique of America's current war on terror arguing, in fact, that it is a logistical impossibility for such a war to be taking place. Professor Chomsky presents his reasoning with astonishing and refreshing clarity, drawing from a wealth of historical knowledge and analysis. "Only those who are entirely ignorant of modern history will be surprised by the course of events, or by the justifications that are provided..."

Power and Terror: Noam Chomsky in Our Times

Power and Terror: Noam Chomsky in Our Times · 2002

Power and Terror: Noam Chomsky in Our Times

MovieDocumentary

This documentary compiles a series of Noam Chomsky's interviews and lectures that address the events of 9/11.

Hellfire: A Journey from Hiroshima

Hellfire: A Journey from Hiroshima · 1986

Hellfire: A Journey from Hiroshima

MovieDocumentary

Japanese husband and wife muralists Iri and Toshi Maruki are known for their depictions of the destruction of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Their collaborative relationship is unique: one paints a painfully detailed vision of the victims of the atomic blast; the other conceals the carefully delineated brush strokes with a grey-black ink “wash.” The first artist restates the specifics of the image; the second re-conceals. Through the repetition of this process, the work emerges.

Mr. Baseball

Mr. Baseball · 1992

Jack Elliot, a one-time MVP for the New York Yankees is now on the down side of his baseball career. With a falling batting average, does he have one good year left and can the manager of the Chunichi Dragons, a Japanese Central baseball league find it in him?

What's a Director?

What's a Director? · 2006

What's a Director?

MovieDramaDocumentary

Works commemorating the 70th anniversary of the founding of Japan mapping Supervision Association

Living the Silent Spring

Living the Silent Spring · 2011

Living the Silent Spring

MovieDocumentary

Fifty years ago, Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring warned of the danger of widespread use of pesticides, helping to launch the environmental movement in the US. Around the same time, the US military began to spray defoliants in Vietnam to deny cover to guerrilla forces. The defoliants, including Agent Orange, were contaminated with the deadly toxin, dioxin. Agent Orange continues to affect the children and grandchildren of those exposed in Vietnam and America to this day.

Outside the Great Wall

Outside the Great Wall · 2010

Outside the Great Wall

MovieDocumentary

More Like This

The Cove

The Cove · 2009

MovieDocumentary

The Cove tells the amazing true story of how an elite team of individuals, films makers and free divers embarked on a covert mission to penetrate the hidden cove in Japan, shining light on a dark and deadly secret. The shocking discoveries were only the tip of the iceberg.

Rate this film

Your ratings make Midnight smarter