Comparing The House Of Bamboo And Occupied Japan

Sam Fuller’s House of Bamboo demonstrates many aspects of Japanese life during the occupation. The combination of Japanese police and American Army working together demonstrates the same cooperation that actually happened. Additionally, Fuller’s use of kimono girls throughout the movie accurately represent some of what Japanese girls were forced to go through during this time. Sam Fuller portrays occupied Japan well through his film by use of kimono girls, literal setting, and the cooperation between Japanese and American law enforcement. House of Bamboo works very well to demonstrate life in Occupied Japan because it was actually filmed in Occupied Japan. Sam Fuller obviously does this so his movie is realistic, but it allows the viewer …show more content…
He shows life in the farming fields in the very first scene, immediately showing the viewer the kind of work that Japanese people have to do. The literal setting also shows the type of tradition that the Japanese culture still had and—perhaps more importantly—what they were changing at the time. For instance, one of Eddie Spanier’s first locations is a rooftop where a traditional Japanese celebration or dance is being practiced. This appears beautiful and elaborate; however, later on at Sandy’s estate, a similar Japanese dance is preformed and replaced with a poppy American dance. This directed scene mirrors that Americanization that Japan went through during the time period due to American soldiers living there. Additionally, the literal setting allowed for literal Japanese buildings and culture. The architecture of the …show more content…
Mass prostitution ravaged the country as a whole. This is evident in Sam Fuller’s House of Bamboo through his use of kimono girls. These girls are prevalent in Sandy’s outfit as the men’s girlfriends. These kimono girls are never explicitly paid as prostitutes, and objectively they appear similar to Hume’s Babysan. Charlie sees Mariko go into an inn room with another man, and he does not seem particularly surprised. Indeed, he remarks that it was “a short romance.” This clearly implies that he assumes Mariko is a prostitute having sex with another man. However, Sandy is greatly angered and upset by the news that Mariko is two-timing with another Westerner. However, this anger is misplaced because Mariko doesn’t even sleep with Eddie, let alone another man. She demonstrates traditional Japanese values and morals by lowering a screen between them when they sleep. Sam Fuller does a great job demonstrating kimono girls throughout the movie. However, there seems to be serious omissions. While it is understandable that this was a movie and there couldn’t be brothels and explicit prostitutes, there still should have been more mention of them, especially considering how many scenes took place inside of the police