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Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence (1983)

R  |   |  Drama, War  |  2 September 1983 (USA)
7.3
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Ratings: 7.3/10 from 9,350 users  
Reviews: 65 user | 52 critic

In 1942 British soldier Jack Celliers comes to a Japanese prison camp. The camp is run by Yonoi, who has a firm belief in discipline, honor and glory. In his view, the allied prisoners are ... See full summary »

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Title: Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence (1983)

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Won 1 BAFTA Film Award. Another 8 wins & 6 nominations. See more awards »

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Edit

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
...
...
...
...
Sgt. Gengo Hara (as Takeshi)
...
Johnny Ohkura ...
Kanemoto
...
De Jong
James Malcolm ...
Celliers' Brother
Chris Broun ...
Celliers aged 12
Yûya Uchida ...
Commandant of Military Prison
Ryûnosuke Kaneda ...
President of the Court
Takashi Naitô ...
Lt. Iwata
Tamio Ishikura ...
Prosecutor
Rokkô Toura ...
Interpreter
Kan Mikami ...
Lt. Ito
Edit

Storyline

In 1942 British soldier Jack Celliers comes to a Japanese prison camp. The camp is run by Yonoi, who has a firm belief in discipline, honor and glory. In his view, the allied prisoners are cowards when they chose to surrender instead of committing suicide. One of the prisoners, interpreter John Lawrence, tries to explain the Japanese way of thinking, but is considered a traitor. Written by Mattias Thuresson

Plot Summary | Add Synopsis

Taglines:

Java, 1942 - A clash of cultures, a test of the human spirit.

Genres:

Drama | War

Certificate:

R | See all certifications »

Parents Guide:

 »
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Details

Country:

| |

Language:

|

Release Date:

2 September 1983 (USA)  »

Also Known As:

Furyo  »

Filming Locations:

 »

Box Office

Gross:

SEK 1,627,497 (Sweden)
 »

Company Credits

Show detailed on  »

Technical Specs

Runtime:

Sound Mix:

Color:

(Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1
See  »
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Did You Know?

Trivia

This movie is set in a POW Camp in Java, Indonesia in 1942 World War II. See more »

Goofs

In the final scene in the prison cell, the cross belt of Lt Col Lawrence's Sam Browne is fitted back to front. See more »

Quotes

[first lines]
Sgt. Gengo Hara: [in Japanese] Wake up, Lawrence.
Colonel Lawrence: [in Japanese] What is it? Why so early, Sergeant Hara?
Sgt. Gengo Hara: [in Japanese] Hurry up!
Group Capt. Hicksley: What does he want?
Colonel Lawrence: [in English] I'll find out?
Sgt. Gengo Hara: [in Japanese] What?
Group Capt. Hicksley: You don't have to take orders from this man, you know, Lawrence.
Colonel Lawrence: Well, I'm the liaison officer, so I'm liaising.
Sgt. Gengo Hara: [in Japanese] What did he say?
[...]
See more »

Connections

Referenced in Film '72: Episode dated 17 December 2014 (2014) See more »

Soundtracks

Rock of Ages
(uncredited)
Lyrics by Augustus Montague Toplady and music by Thomas Hastings
Sung by the prisoners
See more »

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User Reviews

 
Excellent movie, excellent music
8 June 2005 | by (United Kingdom) – See all my reviews

An excellent movie. The relationship between Celliers and Yonoi brought tears almost to my eyes. The depth and feeling of the movie, moved me enormously, especially the final scenes.

The only part I wasn't particularly keen on was of course Bowie as a school boy- that was just strange.

However the movie as a whole was a supremely good one, and Bowie excelled himself. I'm not a huge fan of his movies, but here, he became an actor.

I saw it at Christmas, and it probably made it for me- the scenes of eating the flower, 'Merry Christmas' and the final scene between Yonoi and Bowie


27 of 30 people found this review helpful.  Was this review helpful to you?

Message Boards

Recent Posts
What Exactly Happened to His Brother? scndform
What did Yonoi see in Jack? r5a
Gayness... agitpop
'Merry Christmas! Merry Christmas, Mr Lawrence!´ gubar
Celliers: British or Australian? Desert-Djinn
The Score!!! VariedMovieCollector
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