Wings of Defeat
Encyclopedia
Wings of Defeat is a documentary feature film in which former Kamikaze
reveal they were not fanatics but were ordered to die by a desperate military. Wings of Defeat, broadcast on the PBS Independent Lens series in May 2009, was awarded the 2009 Erik Barnouw Award by the Organization of American Historians
.
In Japan
, World War II
Kamikaze are still revered as self-sacrificing heroes. Internationally, they remain a potent symbol of fanaticism. In astonishingly candid interviews, four former Kamikaze reveal that they were neither suicidal nor fanatical. The film reveals they were young men sentenced to death by a military that could not admit defeat. In heartbreaking testimony corroborated with rare archival footage, they tell us about their dramatic survival and their survivors’ guilt. This riveting, seamlessly edited film is an emotionally charged and timely exposé, probing the responsibilities that a government at war has to its people and its soldiers.
Wings of Defeat features interviews with four trained kamikaze pilots, including three who took off to attack the U.S. fleet off the coast of Okinawa in the spring of 1945 as well as exclusive interviews with surviving American Navy veterans of the USS Drexler
, a destroyer sunk by two kamikaze pilots. The American veterans illustrate the enduring trauma of the suicide attacks. The film features commentary by John W. Dower
, the Pulitzer Prize
-winning, American historian of modern Japan, and Emiko Ohnuki-Tierney
, author of the books Kamikaze Diaries and Cherry Blossoms, Kamikaze and Nationalism.
Kamikaze
The were suicide attacks by military aviators from the Empire of Japan against Allied naval vessels in the closing stages of the Pacific campaign of World War II, designed to destroy as many warships as possible....
reveal they were not fanatics but were ordered to die by a desperate military. Wings of Defeat, broadcast on the PBS Independent Lens series in May 2009, was awarded the 2009 Erik Barnouw Award by the Organization of American Historians
Organization of American Historians
The Organization of American Historians , formerly known as the Mississippi Valley Historical Association, is the largest professional society dedicated to the teaching and study of American history. OAH's members in the U.S...
.
In 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...
, World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
Kamikaze are still revered as self-sacrificing heroes. Internationally, they remain a potent symbol of fanaticism. In astonishingly candid interviews, four former Kamikaze reveal that they were neither suicidal nor fanatical. The film reveals they were young men sentenced to death by a military that could not admit defeat. In heartbreaking testimony corroborated with rare archival footage, they tell us about their dramatic survival and their survivors’ guilt. This riveting, seamlessly edited film is an emotionally charged and timely exposé, probing the responsibilities that a government at war has to its people and its soldiers.
Wings of Defeat features interviews with four trained kamikaze pilots, including three who took off to attack the U.S. fleet off the coast of Okinawa in the spring of 1945 as well as exclusive interviews with surviving American Navy veterans of the USS Drexler
USS Drexler (DD-741)
USS Drexler , an Allen M. Sumner-class destroyer, was named for Ensign Henry Clay Drexler, a Medal of Honor recipient.The Drexler was launched on 3 September 1944 by Bath Iron Works Corp., Bath, Maine; sponsored by Mrs. L. A. Drexler, mother of Ensign Drexler; and commissioned on...
, a destroyer sunk by two kamikaze pilots. The American veterans illustrate the enduring trauma of the suicide attacks. The film features commentary by John W. Dower
John W. Dower
John W. Dower is an American author and historian.Dower earned a bachelor's degree in American Studies from Amherst College in 1959, and a Ph.D. in History and Far Eastern Languages from Harvard University in 1972, where he studied under Albert M. Craig...
, the Pulitzer Prize
Pulitzer Prize
The Pulitzer Prize is a U.S. award for achievements in newspaper and online journalism, literature and musical composition. It was established by American publisher Joseph Pulitzer and is administered by Columbia University in New York City...
-winning, American historian of modern Japan, and Emiko Ohnuki-Tierney
Emiko Ohnuki-Tierney
Emiko Ohnuki-Tierney is an anthropologist who has been working on the question of power of symbols and its absence in political spaces since the mid-1980s...
, author of the books Kamikaze Diaries and Cherry Blossoms, Kamikaze and Nationalism.
Awards
- 2009 Winner - Organization of American Historians Erik Barnouw Award
- 2008 Winner - Special Jury Award, SF Intl Asian American Film Festival
- 2008 Winner - Audience Award, New York Asian American Int'l Film Festival
- 2008 Winner - Best Documentary, Southern Appalachian International Film Festival
- 2008 Winner - Best Director, Southern Appalachian International Film Festival
- 2008 Winner - Best Editing, Southern Appalachian International Film Festival
- 2008 Winner - Above and Beyond Award, Women Film Critics Circle