Untamagiru
Encyclopedia
is a 1989 Japanese film
directed by Gō Takamine
. It is magical realist story of the legendary Okinawan hero Untamagiru participating in efforts to form an independent Okinawa
before the island was returned to Japan
in 1972. Many of the characters speak in the Okinawan language
and thus mainland Japanese spectators needed subtitles to understand it.
Cinema of Japan
The has a history that spans more than 100 years. Japan has one of the oldest and largest film industries in the world – as of 2009 the fourth largest by number of feature films produced. Movies have been produced in Japan since 1897, when the first foreign cameramen arrived...
directed by Gō Takamine
Gō Takamine
is a Japanese director of fiction films, documentaries and experimental films. Born on Ishigaki Island and raised in Naha, Takamine went to university in Kyoto and there began making 8mm films...
. It is magical realist story of the legendary Okinawan hero Untamagiru participating in efforts to form an independent Okinawa
Ryukyu independence movement
The or Republic of the Ryūkyūs is a movement for the independence of Okinawa and the surrounding islands , from Japan. The movement emerged in 1945, after the end of the Pacific War...
before the island was returned to Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
in 1972. Many of the characters speak in the Okinawan language
Okinawan language
Central Okinawan, or simply Okinawan , is a Northern Ryukyuan language spoken primarily in the southern half of the island of Okinawa, as well as in the surrounding islands of Kerama, Kumejima, Tonaki, Aguni, and a number of smaller peripheral islands...
and thus mainland Japanese spectators needed subtitles to understand it.