Beat Takeshi to play war criminal Hideki Tojo in TV drama

He'll have to do something about his hair, undye it redye it. And shave some off.

Medieval times,

Sorry, I should read posts more carefully. Behind you all the way, mate!

Tatanka,

Go and spray paint your ultranationalist fatigues and your black van hot pink, and then watch the movie before posting about stuff you don't understand. Then think about what deliberately causing the deaths of millions of people might cause YOU to be labelled! And the have a nice life. Peace!

All those responsible for the war, on all sides, should be viewed with distaste and disgust. If we do not, we risk allowing petty sentimentality to lead us down the road to the arrogance and short sightedness that leads to war.

Medieval times, I don't remember England invading Poland, or the U.S. Korea, China, Singapore and Hawaii. In other words, read some history before you post, as I imagine Beat Takeshi has! ( Hope that's "on topic" enough for you, JT!)

rjd_jr,

Now why would he want to play such a person? Come on Beat, stick to what you do best, gangsters.

But he is, my dear rjd, he is!

It'll be interesting to see the spin they put on this movie, war-criminal or a misunderstood patriot doing this best for Japan.

A few months ago I watched a fairly new Japanese movie about the Cowra breakout in Australia. It seemed to stick to history quite well, so we can only hope with this new movie about Tojo it will be (fairly) historically accurate.

Zatoichi rules!!!

I Like Beat Takeshi, I think he should be good in the role

ECC is behind this. Seen the posters on the train. They taught him German and dyed his hair blond.

Playing Tojo is like playing Hitler. I hope they don't twist history, because Japan is famous for it, even in England.

From the title, "What the war meant", it seems that this will be a broader topic than a Tojo bio.

Shouldn't it say Prime Minister??????????????? He will be playing the role of Prime Minister not war criminal.

Isn't it nice how winners of wars can put labels on the losers.

Isn't it nice how one loser has problems with history and one doesn't?

All those responsible for the war, on all sides, should be viewed with distaste and disgust. If we do not, we risk allowing petty sentimentality to lead us down the road to the arrogance and short sightedness that leads to war.

I don't feel distaste and disgust for America, U.K., Russia and the allies. I feel thankful they won the war. If Japan, Germany and Italy won, the world would be a much more terrible place today.

It's hard for people to undersand, but there are some things worth fighting for.

Moderator: Readers, please focus your comments on Beat Takeshi's drama.

A TBS drama eh? I'm predicting additional crimes against broadcasting.

Lets see if they portray him as a 'tortured soul' who was only doing what he thought was best for beautiful Japan!

Beat Takeshi is more than a gangster actor. As ointed out by techall, Sgt Hara in Merry Christmas MrLawrence was one of his earlier roles and imo one of his best roles. Playing the charachter of Hideki Tojo doesn't make Takeshi any worse or unadmirable. History is history and it has to be told so that it won't be repeated. It only becomes a problem when one blatantly covers up history or distorts history that it becomes a problem. There are no winners or losers in a war as everyone pays a price in that humanity loses.

Doesn't Takeshi have two very different persona? When he is hitting people over the head with a giant plastic hammer he is "Beat". When he is directing or acting he is Kitano, Takeshi. His filmography is quite extensive and includes several international award winners. The headline for the article should probably reflect that difference.

NeoJarnal:

Kitano played Sgt. Hara in the movie, an enlisted man.

He was great in Merry Christmas Mr.Lawerence. But that film was quite anti-war.

Oh, by the way, I believe he was tried as a war criminal in that one too and hanged at the end on the movie.

Not the first WWII role for Beat.....remember "Merry Christmas Mr. Lawerence" with David Bowie? Beat did a fantastic job in that one.

Tatanka. Sentimentalists like to look at the war period in Japan as some great natsukashi era when Japan was great and everything was wonderful. They forget that it brought death to nearly an entire generation of young men here. It left countless fatherless children. It broke the hearts and health of the loved ones left behind. And it destroyed the entire nation.

Winner or loser. WWII destroyed a lot of lives on both sides. All those responsible for the war, on all sides, should be viewed with distaste and disgust. If we do not, we risk allowing petty sentimentality to lead us down the road to the arrogance and short sightedness that leads to war.

Tojo was a war criminal. Not unlike Truman for dropping the A-bomb on cities twice when it could have made the same powerful impression dropped somewhere less or unpopulated. Tojo led Japan to self destruction. Truman used the death of two cities to impress a point upon the Russians. Both were wrong.

Sad to see Takeshi taking this role.

Wouldn't that be like Will Ferrell playing the role of Douglas MacArthur?

and another typical type-cast role for Ferrel to add.

no... MacArthur was a hero who rid the Pacfic of an aggressive and inhumane foe.

I hope we get to see him hanged at the end...

rjd_jr "Come on Beat, stick to what you do best, gangsters."

...gangster ? Tojo was not so different !

Wouldn't that be like Will Ferrell playing the role of Douglas MacArthur?

Now why would he want to play such a person? Come on Beat, stick to what you do best, gangsters.

Isn't it nice how winners of wars can put labels on the losers.

What? Like Tojo and the Imperial military brought so much prosperity and happiness to the people of Japan? Don't forget that the only person who ever "shot" Tojo was an angry Japanese after the war ended.

Isn't it nice how winners of wars can put labels on the losers.