DILOMACY IS ABOUT THE ART THAT SAVED ART
The order had been given by Hitler—destroy Paris. As allied forces approached in mid-1944, ailing General Dietrich von Choltitz (played by Niels Arestrup) was transferred to be the city’s occupying general who would carry out the order; disobeying the order would mean that his own children would be killed. All of a sudden Raoul Nordling (André Dussollier), a Swedish consul, enters his room from a secret entrance into the lavish room of the commander on the top floor of a hotel overlooking the city. The diplomat’s mission is to stop the destruction, but his only weapon is his tongue. And what a tongue! He uses every imaginable argument and emotion to urge the general to disobey Hitler’s order, which has not yet been given, though preparations have been completed. One of the arguments is to suggest that the general would bring his children to visit Paris in five years and tell them that he, the general, saved the beautiful city from destruction. When the general collapses in an apparent attack to his heart, the diplomat brings him medication to save his life. The analogy works, and Paris is saved. Titles at the end indicate that the general was apprehended by allied forces but released, and that the two met together in Paris during 1955. The extraordinary conversation illustrates in many ways why peace is preferable to senseless wartime vengeance. Diplomacy (Diplomatie), directed by Volker Schlöndorff, has been nominated by the Political Film Society as the best film on peace of 2014. MH
GIOVANNI’S ISLAND PROVES THAT A FABLE CAN SERVE TO SUSTAIN HOPE
An animated Japanese film, the historical setting of Giovanni’s Island (Jobanni no shima) is another occupation—Russia’s seizure of Shikotan, a Japanese northern island—which took place after the surrender on August 15, 1945, is announced by the emperor. Kanta and Junpei are been named respectively for Campanella and Giovanni, characters in the children’s story Night on the Galactic Railroad by Kenji Miyazawa, a book about a railroad that passes through the galaxy. With subtitled dates through the film, the effort is to create an historical context in which to appreciate how the two children adapt to the occupation joyfully, befriending Tanya, a Russian girl, and learning to sing Russian songs. For the adults, however, the experience is harsh, involving eviction from their home to a barn, secret distribution of food from a hiding place, arrest and relocation of all Japanese on the island to an internment camp, and separation of the children from their father. Within a year, however, the Japanese are repatriated. The point of Giovanni’s Island is to explain why, at the beginning of the film, several elderly Japanese are on a ship approaching that island. At the end, filmviewers see a reunion of Tanya and Junpei in a welcoming reception. The Russians clearly want to mitigate the bitter memories of stealing an island from Japan, and director Toshihiko Nishikubo accepts that narrative: As the island remains under Russian control, with Japan never ceasing to call for the return of the seized northern islands, the focus is on healing—a plea for peace. For that effort, along with a reenactment of Russia’s illegal occupation, the Political Film Society has not only nominated Giovanni’s Island for best film on peace (for the healing effort) but also best film exposé (bringing those events to light) and best film on human rights (for the violations). MH