The Pleasures of the Analog Era / Cinema: Director Kunio Watanabe's 'The Emperor Meiji and the Great Russo-Japanese War'

Where does that image of the Emperor
originate from?

At the beginning of 1904, the Genro (elder statesmen) and cabinet ministers, led by Prince Ito Hirobumi, President of the House of Peers, gathered for an Imperial Conference. As Russia's relentless southward expansion policy brought its clutches from Manchuria toward the Korean Peninsula, the cry to "defeat Russia" filled the nation, and finally, the government and military of the Empire of Japan resolved to go to war and began the final procedures. However, Emperor Meiji, when asked for his Imperial decision, did not nod in agreement; instead, he left his seat after saying, "You must consider this carefully and avoid war." Then, he recited an Imperial poem (waka):


　In a world where all the seas
　Are thought to be brothers,

　Why do the winds and waves
　Rise in such turmoil?


This is the opening scene of director Kunio Watanabe's 'The Emperor Meiji and the Great Russo-Japanese War' (1957). The role of Emperor Meiji was played by the sword-fighting actor Kanjuro Arashi, marking the first time in the history of Japanese cinema that an actor portrayed the Emperor on screen. Of course, the reason this film became an unprecedented blockbuster was not solely due to that. Having suffered unconditional surrender in the Pacific War, gone through the occupation period under GHQ (General Headquarters of the Allied Powers), finally regained independence through the San Francisco Peace Treaty (1951), and achieved the restoration of diplomatic relations with the Soviet Union (1956), perhaps there was a growing sentiment among the people at that time to reaffirm the identity of this country.


After this, when the outbreak of the Russo-Japanese War becomes unavoidable, the film depicts the Emperor wearing winter military uniforms even in midsummer out of concern for the soldiers fighting in the cold regions of the continent, eating the same barley-rice bento as them, and trying to etch the name of every single fallen soldier into his mind. While these episodes are naturally based on historical facts to some extent, one feels that a legendary atmosphere permeates them more strongly.


Japan's oldest historical record, the 'Kojiki' (712), was likely intended to share the country's identity through narratives as the ritsuryo state was being established. The first volume tells of the formation of all things by the gods, the second volume tells of the process by which Emperor Jimmu and others, who trace their lineage to the gods, unified and ruled the land, and the third volume tells of the course of the reigns of human emperors. Emperor Nintoku (O-sazaki-no-Mikoto), who stands at the forefront, looks out over the world from a high place and, noticing the lack of rising smoke, perceives the poverty of the people. He exempts them from forced labor and does not repair the Imperial Palace even when the roof begins to leak, and as the country eventually regains its prosperity, he is recorded as a "Sage Emperor" (Hijiri). Regarding this title, Norinaga Motoori annotated it in his 'Kojiki-den' as follows:


"The two characters for 'Sage Emperor' should be read as 'Hijiri,' which means 'one who knows the sun.' However, this is not an original title of the Imperial Land. It is taken from the Chinese classics, where the virtues of a person called a 'sage' are praised by comparing them to the sun and moon, meaning that he rules the world like the sun. Therefore, praising the Emperor as 'Hijiri' began with this Emperor, and it is a title modeled after Chinese examples."


In other words, it was a device to show the ideal way of an Emperor by introducing the image of the Sage Emperor, starting with the legendary Yao and Shun of ancient China. Although such images eventually dissipated over the long course of history, perhaps the circumstances were such that the 'Sage Emperor' device was used once again in this film to shape the image of Emperor Meiji, more than 1,200 years after the 'Kojiki.' Thus, by placing Emperor Meiji within the flow of Eastern political thought, it also brought to light the positioning of modern Japan as it took flight onto the grand stage of world history. Such a national image was subsequently expanded and reproduced by Ryotaro Shiba's long novel 'Clouds Above the Hill' (1972), and further imprinted on the people of the 21st century as a new narrative through NHK's large-scale drama adaptation (2009–11)...


In the film, even after the Combined Fleet led by Heihachiro Togo defeats the Baltic Fleet under the command of Rozhestvensky in the Battle of Tsushima, and the Russo-Japanese War finally ends in a miraculous victory, Emperor Meiji does not show a single smile. While all of Japan is in a frenzy of joy, the film concludes with him quietly reciting the following Imperial poem:
　In a war　Rare since ancient times,　How I lament　The loss of so many people.