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RATING:  
SINGAPORE: Year of hatred fuelled by almost complete non-contrition has made the Japanese occupation of China and in particular, the Nanjing Massacre, a very hard topic for most Chinese people to speak about, let alone discuss or watch on film.
Yet Chinese director Lu Chuan's "City Of Life And Death" is an absolute must-see. His stirring and heart-wrenching dramatisation of this painful period in his country's history is neither the blatant propaganda party politicking usually found in the country's domestic cinema, nor a traitorous Japanese sympathiser.
"City" is a poignant human story, about cowardice and bravery, defiance and resignation, self-preservation and self-sacrifice in the excess of war, bound together by riveting action sequences and uncomfortably beautiful cinematography.
It is as much about unfathomable barbarity as it is about the victims who suffered them, as Lu frames each harrowing image of war, rape and massacre, with an abstract reality that's emotionally draining without succumbing to outright gore.
Focusing on both real figures (Nazi businessman John Rabe who helped establish a "safety zone" in the heart of the city) and fictitious characters (the naïve Japanese soldier who feels both moral guilt and the tug of patriotism), Lu's delicate touch engages the audience to emotionally invest in each character of this immense cast.
Remarkably, "City" never judges, moralises, or preaches, and doesn't yield to heart-tugging clichés or noxious stereotypes.
Though the length (132-minutes) and enormity of the subject matter might overwhelm some, "City Of Life And Death" will crack the steeliest of exteriors. It is appalling that it was passed over as China's entry for Best Foreign Picture at the Oscars. - TODAY/sh
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