Emperor (2012 film)

Emperor is a 2012 American-Japanese historical drama film directed by Peter Webber. Tommy Lee Jones and Matthew Fox star in lead roles as General Douglas MacArthur and Brigadier General Bonner Fellers respectively.

Plot
Brigadier General Bonner Fellers is sent to Japan as a part of the occupation force. He is tasked with arresting Japanese war criminals, including former Prime Minister Hideki Tojo. Before he departs, he privately orders his Japanese interpreter and driver, Takahashi, to locate his Japanese girlfriend, Aya Shimada.

After arresting Tojo, the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers, General Douglas MacArthur, informs Fellers that Emperor Hirohito is being shielded from war crimes trials, despite the American people wanting him to answer for Japan's actions. Prosecuting him could lead to a revolt, so MacArthur gives Fellers ten days to investigate the Emperor to decide the occupation force's next steps. Takahashi informs Fellers that Aya's Tokyo apartment was bombed, and is ordered to investigate her hometown, Shizuoka.

Fellers and his staff compile a list of high-profile Japanese officials who advised Emperor Hirohito at the start of the war. Finding no American collaborators among them, they start by interrogating Tojo, who gives them the name of Fumimaro Konoe, the former prime minister. Fellers asks Konoe if the Emperor was responsible for starting the war and Konoe gives no conclusive evidence, but directs Fellers to Kōichi Kido, Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal.

Fellers waits to meet with Kido, who eventually reneges out of fear of retribution. Fellers recalls his 1940 visit to Tokyo when he reunited with Aya, then an English teacher; she returned to Japan after her father's death. After a banquet at MacArthur's residence, Takahashi informs Fellers that Shizuoka was bombed. Fellers immediately travels there, before ordering Takahashi to find a list of the dead.

Fellers recalls his visit to Aya's uncle, General Kajima, for help with a paper on the mindset of the Japanese soldier. Kajima insists that Japan would win a war against the US, because of the Japanese soldier's sense of duty to the Emperor. When Fellers returns to Tokyo, he decides he must interview Teizaburō Sekiya, a member of the Privy Council, who, like all others, gives no evidence to exonerate the Emperor.

Later, Kido unexpectedly arrives in the middle of the night to give his testimony. Before the Japanese surrender, the Supreme Council's deadlock between those in favor of surrender and those who opposed it led the Emperor to address the Council. Because there were radical militarists in the Imperial Army, the Emperor made an audio recording of his order to surrender.

Before the recording could be broadcast, the militarists attempted a coup and attacked the Imperial Palace. The Emperor and Kido survived and broadcast the recording. Unfortunately for Fellers, all other witnesses committed suicide and all records were destroyed, leaving him only with Kido's testimony. Kido informs Fellers that, though the Emperor's role is, in actuality, a ceremonial one, the Emperor was critical in ending the war.

Fellers decides to visit General Kajima, who explains to Fellers that the Japanese people's selflessness and strong devotion to cultural values drives them to both great sacrifice and unspeakable crimes. Kajima does not know if the Emperor is guilty, but emphasizes his role in ending the war. He gives Fellers a box of folded letters from Aya addressed to him; Aya died in an Allied bombing raid.

Fellers concludes that the Emperor's guilt or innocence cannot be known, but his role in ending the war was undeniable and significant. He gives his report to MacArthur, who is displeased by the lack of conclusive evidence. Fellers argues the Emperor should be exonerated as the Allies agreed to allow Japan to keep him as the head of state.

MacArthur orders Fellers to arrange a meeting between him and the Emperor. Before the Emperor arrives, Fellers confesses to MacArthur his role in diverting Allied bombers away from Shizuoka for personal reasons; MacArthur dismisses it because it cost no American lives. When Emperor Hirohito arrives, he offers himself to be punished alone in Japan's stead. MacArthur states he has no intention of punishing Japan or Hirohito, and wishes to discuss collaborating towards Japan's reconstruction.

Production
Principal photography began shooting in January 2012 in New Zealand.

Scenes used were shot on location at RNZAF Base Whenuapai and some Air Force personnel used as extras for the movie.

Release
The film premiered at the 2012 Toronto International Film Festival and saw a limited release in the United States on March 8, 2013. Producer Gary Foster, Matthew Fox and Tommy Lee Jones attended a Japanese premiere along with several Japanese actors and actresses on July 18, 2013, preceding its opening in the cinemas nationwide in Japan on July 27.