The Saga of Anatahan (1953) The creativity of the final film and the significance of subtitles (Review)

Josef Von Sternberg’s final film was 1953’s The Saga of Anatahan, out today from Eureka’s Masters of Cinema. Its status as a final film and some of the choices it makes become very interesting when paired with a comment Brian De Palma made in his recent self-titled documentary. He stated that film-makers produce their best works between the age of 30 & 50. It makes the final film an interesting discussion point.

It’s World War II and we are with a crew of Japanese soldiers as they crash in the stormy waters washing up on volcanic rock rife with greenery somewhere between their mother nation and Papua new guinea in the Pacific. Already on the island are Kusakabe and Keiko (Akemi Negishi), with the arrival of the soldiers that make Keiko the only woman deserted on this island. Over the course of seven (in film) years, Von Sternberg uses the isolation of these men and woman to depict how concepts like humanity, respect, and pride disintegrate leaving only self-serving animal indulgences. All rationality and discipline get washed away with their coconut wine and the waves, the power of being the only woman places a great deal of pressure and stress of Keiko. She is a queen, a prize to be won and fought over. A prize that results in bloodshed once the survivors happen upon the armed wreck of a fighter plane in the second half.

One of the most interesting themes is the power held by the man with the highest rank. In the early days, he has power, he chastises those for neglecting duties like keeping watch for potential enemy attacks or maintaining a professional decorum as men of the military. But as isolation and loneliness take control, he power diminishes, yet he continues with his responsibilities alone. When things go awry, he gets power back implying that humanity is a mere backup when things take a turn for the worse. That in situations like this chaos reigns. As a conceptual piece, it’s fascinating, sitting somewhere between John Boorman’s Hell in the Pacific and an earth-set Fantastic Planet (René Laloux). There is also a weighty performance from Akemi Negishi who would later go on to star in Kurosawa’s Red Beard.

There is a big caveat as a fan of Japanese cinema, The Saga of Anatahan isn’t subtitled. The furthest it’ll get is ‘hai’ (which means yes), (speaks Japanese) or (continues to speak Japanese). Instead what it has is an English narration track [by the director] using a perspective as if speaking for one of the castaways, telling us what things mean, what is true and what is made up from the accounts of others.

This furthers the disintegration by removing anyone who doesn’t speak Japanese ability to understand them as if subjects in a natural history documentary. If this was light on dialogue that would be one thing, but everyone is awfully chatty and the decision to not subtitle locks away a further dramatic layer and it’s frustrating in a world where every country in the world can have their cinematic output presented to the wider world. This was Von Sternberg’s creative decision, so Eureka adding a subtitle track would be against the spirit the movie was made in – that being said, something locked away in the extras would’ve been a nice addition. The interesting question here, how does the Saga of Anatahan play in Japan?

The performances aren’t showy enough to glean an awful lot from body language meaning the narration, which elaborates on anything no matter how little or large, is an absolute necessity. Sure, extras like Tag Gallagher’s visual essay and an interview with Tony Rayns add all manner of context one could hope for, but the film itself cuts off its nose to spite its face, and as that adage suggests it’s a much lesser film because of it. Still, when considered within the body of Josef Von Sternberg’s body of work (heavily noir and melodrama) it becomes fascinating, especially within the canon of ‘final films;.

Thanks for reading our review of The Saga of Anatahan

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