Okinawa: The Afterburn

"Okinawa: The Afterburn" is the first documentary to provide a comprehensive look at the Battle of Okinawa and the ensuing 70-year occupation by the United States military. On April 1, 1945, American troops landed on Okinawa, beginning a battle that claimed the lives of some 240,000 people. The film depicts the battle through the eyes of Japanese and American soldiers who fought each other, along with Okinawa civilians who were swept up in the fighting, with carefully selected footage from the U.S. National Archives. The film also conveys the postwar fate of Okinawa, home to U.S. military bases and American soldiers -- and the related crimes, accidents, and pollution they have caused. In Okinawa, the legacy of the war translates into a deeply rooted aversion to military force. This has been expressed in recent years by the island-wide rejection of a plan to build a new U.S. base at Henoko, a source of controversy to this day. "Okinawa: The Afterburn" explores the roots of this resistance and Okinawa's vision for the future.