DVD Review: Okinawa: The Afterburn

Okinawa: The Afterburn is an interesting and at times horrifying and heartbreaking documentary about the island of Okinawa, and the lasting U.S. presence there after World War II. For those who are not familiar with Okinawa, a title card at the beginning tells us, “Just one-third the size of Long Island in New York, Okinawa is occupied by 32 American military bases.” In 1945, after a long and bloody battle, the U.S. military claimed Okinawa, and though the island has since been returned to Japan (in 1972), the U.S. military has not left.

One of the bases there is considered the most dangerous military base in the world, located in a densely populated area. The footage at the beginning is incredible; seeing it, you’ll ask yourself how planes could possibly land or take off safely without hitting the surrounding buildings. Well, sure enough, we learn that a military helicopter crashed into a building at the nearby university. And that is all in the film’s opening sequence.

The documentary is divided into four sections, the first of which is about the Battle of Okinawa in World War II, during which one fourth of the island’s population was killed. What’s particularly intriguing is that this film includes interviews with people who were soldiers from both sides. The film is narrated, but the narration is kept to a minimum, and those interviewed are allowed to tell the story. A former Japanese soldier says: “People who survived the Battle of Okinawa say the war never ended. That’s certainly true for me.” There is also footage of the U.S. forces landing, as well as U.S. news reels about the battle and some great still photographs.

The second section is about the U.S. occupation of Okinawa, and how its citizens were moved to detention camps. This section also contains news reels, and there is footage of a village being uprooted so that a U.S. base could be built. Okinawa was used as a staging area for wars in Korea and Vietnam. Again, we hear from U.S. soldiers stationed there as well as from Japanese locals in order to get a fuller picture of what life was like there during this time. This section deals also with the question of identity among the population of a place that was occupied by another nation’s forces.

The third section is titled “The Afterburn,” and deals with some of the horrific events that happened after the U.S. forces landed there, such as the group suicides which didn’t come to light until decades later. The film takes us into the caves where people and lived and died, and the story of the teenage girl who begged her mother to kill her is particularly unsettling. This section also gets into some of the crimes committed by U.S. soldiers, such as the abduction, rape and murder of a six-year-old girl in 1955, and the abduction and rape of a twelve-year-old girl by three soldiers in 1995 (one of those soldiers is interviewed in the film).

The final section is the shortest, and is about the future of Okinawa, and about the plans for a new base which would endanger the coral and sea life in the bay.

Special Features

The DVD includes four bonus scenes, which total approximately twenty-one minutes. One features a former Japanese soldier describing the experience of facing flamethrowers, and includes footage of U.S. soldiers setting fires. In the second, a woman describes how she worked in a mess hall for no pay. The third is about a photographer who took photos of the helicopter crash. And in the fourth scene, former U.S. marine Douglas Lummis talks about the occupation mentality of the U.S. marines.

The DVD also includes a booklet with a map of Okinawa and a list of key points in its history.

Okinawa: The Afterburn was directed by John Junkerman, who also provides the narration. It was released on DVD on October 25, 2016 through First Run Features.