For Hong Kong, war films may be more effective as patriotic education
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Dead to Rights is no doubt one of the most engrossing films of the year, touching the heart of every Chinese cinema-goer who has caught it. The movie, set against the backdrop of the Nanking massacre, is being released across the globe to bring to the international community the painful story of Chinese resistance to Japanese aggression.
There is another film, with a lower profile, that also deserves our attention: the plot of Dongji Rescue unfolds as the Japanese army furtively ships British prisoners of war to Japan, in violation of the Geneva Convention. These POWs were captured in Hong Kong when the Japanese invaded the city. After the ship is torpedoed, the POWs attempt to escape but are fired at by the Japanese army.
Enter Chinese fishermen from Dongji, part of the Zhoushan archipelago of Zhejiang province, who display tremendous courage in saving the lives of the British captives. The film is based on a nugget of history that I believe is known to very few people in Hong Kong.
Besides the Nanking massacre, the other brutalities that occurred across China during the Japanese invasion should also be told in movies to raise awareness. These films have already got me interested in finding out more about what the Japanese did to the Chinese during that dark period in history.
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Textbooks and other settings of formal education, while important in passing on anguished memories to younger generations, are a less immersive and sensory medium than cinema.
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