NHK Documentary

On the 70th year since the end of World War Ⅱ, NHK gathered archival film of the Pacific War from home and abroad and took on the challenge of colorizing the material with the help of experts in various fields. Compiled from the restored footage, this documentary vividly revives the realities of the war, bringing to light what had been obscured in the black-and-white films and photos, and conveying with fresh intensity the experiences of those who were there through diaries and words.

More than 50,000 Japanese nurses went to the frontlines in the World War II to aid their country. But they were unprepared for the horrible reality that awaited them. As they worked to protect the soldiers, they faced threats to their own well-being. Wartime documents that had long been confidential, along with the testimony of former nurses, shed light on how they have struggled to come to terms with their wartime experiences.

The Battle of Okinawa was one of the bloodiest in the Pacific War. Even women and children were called to arms to cover the serious shortage of Japanese troops. As a result, at least 90,000 civilians perished, the largest number of casualties in a ground battle within Japan. The program reconstructs the overall story of this battle using big data analysis from newly discovered casualty records. Also utilized are invaluable footage filmed by the U.S. Army, and graphic eyewitness accounts of civilians on audio tapes. Witness the search for the truth behind this brutal ground battle that drove both soldiers and civilians into madness, and turned a tropical paradise into a tragic hell on earth.