What it’s about
Filmmaker Kazuo Hara spent five years trailing WWII veteran and activist Kenzo Okuzaki, a man notorious in his native Japan for firing a slingshot at Emperor Hirohito, for which he spent over a decade in prison. Sort of a one-man truth-and-reconciliation committee, Okuzaki is on a maniacal mission to redress the wrongs he feels were done to himself and other soldiers who blindly followed the country into war. Haunted by an unspeakable atrocity in New Guinea, where he was stationed, Okuzaki locates the men involved, and one by one cajoles them-in some cases, through physical violence-to admit their role in the incident.
Why we love it
This captivating but hard-to-define film is a portrait of a moral crusader whose explosive temper and single-minded dedication to a personal quest for truth make for an unusually compelling viewing experience. Is Kenzo a saint or a criminal; is he truly crazed or merely crippled by anguish? The answer: a bit of both, and Hara's camera is on hand to capture this man's ongoing catharsis. One thing you can be sure of: “Naked Army” is like nothing else you've seen.