I liked this movie....BUT....gives a " look-see" into the surrender and occupation of Japan after dropping our two bombs to end WW 2. Timeline is condensed & NOT historically accurate up to a point. There is a lot of dramatic romance license here with FELLERS, his Japanese lady ( IT NEVER OCCURRED) and what unfolded. But a good, well-acted, interesting movie if you like war drama type movies. RATED PG.

PS My father fought the Japanese in WW 2 in the South Pacific and was going to be PART of the home islands invasion that would have caused thousands of casualties. The Japanese had NO MERCY for soldiers captured or injured. WE HAD THE BOMB and used it correctly to force Japan to surrender. WE warned them FIRST of what will happen but they refused to surrender and fought on. Only AFTER they refused to surrender, then we used it on their two cities of military weapon targets did they surrender or would have face utter destruction.

Always a fan of TLJones & always find MacArthur a fascinating person. This is very loosely based on some facts. I found the speaking difficult to hear & follow. Peaked my interest to search for facts on the subjects, especially Fellers. Watched only for interest in the era & absolutely nothing on TV.

It's difficult to buy this one.

I'm sold on my own argument that the U.S. was guilty of war crimes in WWII. The U.S.A., the only country to detonate nuclear weapons in history.

This IS what happens though, immediately after war, charge the defeated with war crimes to avoid the accusation against the victors and include foreign countries in the war crimes accusation to always refer back to such an accusation if addressed anytime in the future. THEN teach your populations about the war from a biased perspective deceiving them out of any non-patriotic opinions they can develop about the war itself.

Yes, it was slow, maybe not historically accurate, and a little schmaltzy, but I enjoyed it well enough.

A soap opera about a GI and a Japanese woman prior to and during WWII until she was killed in a bombing raid. It's all set in a context of the US HQ in Tokyo after the surrender and handwringing about whether the Emperor was guilty of war crimes and should be hanged, though there's no suspense because we all recall Hirohito wasn't hanged so all the contrived plotting of the investigation is moot. There's lots of man/woman running around in slow motion doing loving smiling to romantic background music and dead air, deep sadness in the heart of the GI when he discovers his love was killed in a bombing attack, crying as he reads the notes to him left with her uncle. More slow motion flashbacks to remind you they played in a bamboo forest as lovers before the war. More slow motion love action scenes. More. More.

The primary thrust of the movie was the investigation into whether or not the emperor of Japan was responsible for the Pearl Harbor attack or if his actions to end the war, as well as the need to keep him in place to maintain the peace, warranted not executing him for war crimes. I didn't think MacArthur came off as glorified (he seemed a bit of a wanker really). I did like the uncertainty the emperor's role. There really is no way to be certain, and history is usually portrayed in absolutes so that was at least somewhat refreshing.

I didnt really like this one. I was not too bored, but in the end, I didnt really see the point.

I like others do not know the exact military history of General MacArthur. He is played by Tommy Lee Jones as a controversial General. It should be note that "Emperor" is more about a General Fellers, who is asked to make a report on the responsibility the Emperor of Japan may have had in getting Japan to attack the United States. In "Emperor" Tommy Lee Jones takes a lesser part of the movie to Matthew Fox playing General Fellers. I felt there was a decent movie with a history lesson to boot!

I have to admit I liked this movie a lot. The plot is straightforward: General Bonner Fellers (Matthew Fox) is hired by General Douglas MacArthur (Tommy Lee Jones) to investigate the role of Emperor Hirohito (Takataro Kataoka) during World War II, to investigate whether the Emperor should be tried as a war criminal. However the film is about a lot more than just conduct during war; it is a story of cultural adaptation, as Fellers comes to know something about Japanese attitudes towards the conflict, and how they differ significantly from those embraced by the Americans. Eventually the two sides come to an understanding - so much so that Hirohito actually deigns to have a meeting with MacArthur, something hitherto considered unthinkable in Japanese aristocratic culture.

A lukewarm fictional plot interferes with what could have been a great historical drama.