An Intriguing Story That I Haven’t Heard Before

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MOVIE REVIEW
Onoda: 10,000 Nights in the Jungle (Onoda, 10 000 nuits dans la jungle)
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Genre: Adventure, Drama, War
Year Released: 2022
Runtime: 2h 47m
Director(s): Arthur Harari
Writer(s): Arthur Harari, Vincent Poymiro, with the collaboration of Bernard Cendron, freely inspired by the life of Hiroo Onoda
Cast: EndÅ YÅ«ya, Tsuda Kanji, Matsuura YÅ«ya, Chiba Tetsuya, KatÅ Shinsuke, Inowaki Kai, Issey Ogata, Nakano Taïga, Suwa Nobuhiro, Yoshioka Mutsuo, Adachi Tomomitsu, Shimada KyÅ«saku, Angeli Bayani, Jemuel Cedrick Satumba
Where To Watch: in select theaters on October 14th

RAVING REVIEW: The story here is powerful because you can’t make up something like this. A decidedly slow burn builds up to a powerful experience throughout the film.

This is likely going to be a film you either love or one that you struggle through; the runtime of the film is probably more than most audiences would be comfortable with, but it is all part of how the story builds. While I think it could’ve been edited down some (especially the first act), I think there was an intention behind the runtime.

The film finds humor in even the darkest moments; it balances itself with the tone. The fact that the film is at least partially based on actual events gives it a weight that makes you feel more attached to the outcome while watching. I don’t think there will be any awards provided for pushing the limits of filmmaking; at times, it is more reminiscent of a documentary than an adventure/war film.

Often I find specific film stories are more impressive because of what they’re about than the film itself; that isn’t a knock on the filmmakers. It’s just that I sometimes create what a movie should be about and how it should play out based on its story.

In the end, the film is still a fantastic statement piece and incredibly memorable in every way. The story of the lengths a person will go to after being pushed to extremes is interesting. While the execution isn’t perfect, the film's journey is worth it. I usually find myself researching documentaries after watching them, but this is one of the rare exceptions where I’ve spent some time digging into the story of a regular film.

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