Emperor is a 2012 Historical Fiction film about Japan at the end of World War II, starring Tommy Lee Jones and Matthew Fox.
The Emperor's position in Japan has been seen as a god by the Japanese people for hundreds of years, and the current emperor Hirohito is no exception; this opinion does not falter even after the bombs which decimated Hiroshima and Nagasaki fell. General Douglas MacArthur (Jones) is sent to Japan to secure the Emperor's surrender, which begins with the arrest and detainment of 30 of the Emperor's top men. But this is just the beginning, as MacArthur assigns one of his intelligence officers, Brigadier General Bonner Fellers (Fox) to perform research and investigations into what should be the Emperor's fate; the famous General believes that the Japanese situation could become a powder keg if anything untoward were to happen to their beloved monarch, and Fellers is to verify that such would indeed happen, to justify pardoning the leader.
Fellers also has a personal stake in Japan and its relationship to the west; his girlfriend Aya (Eriko Hatsune), whom he met in college 11 years ago, now lives in Tokyo, and Fellers is concerned for her safety, as well as what the surrender of, basically her god, could mean to them.
Contains examples of:
- Ambiguously Evil: As is repeatedly noted, Hirohito's actual complicity in Japan launching the war and committing atrocities during it is neither proven nor disproven, although the film seems to side with the idea that he's an innocent figurehead.
- Beware the Quiet Ones: General Richter is this compared to your ordinary Knight Templar, as while nearly every word he utters is designed to undermine Fellers, he often just stands in the background and when he does speak, sounds restrained and matter-of-fact.
- The Big Board: Feller's investigations center on this, the 32 men most close to Hirohito, divided into three categories; Military, Imperial and Political.
- Break the Cutie: Aya, when her father died; she returned to Japan and became a withdrawn, saddened English teacher who is initially very cold to Fellers.
- Cool Uncle: General Kajima is a sterner version of this trope than usual but did engage in philosophical discussions about the war with his niece and Fellers, and helped Fellers sneak out of the country and avoid being arrested by the regime when war broke out. When the war is over, he bonds with Fellers over their mutual grief over Aya's death and confides his regret for some of the awful things he and his men did in the war.
- Dead All Along: Aya.
- Driven to Suicide: Ritual to the Japanese after defeat in battle, to avoid prosecution or prevent the enemy from negatively influencing their loved ones or associates.
- Tojo is the first we see explicitly, it only being Attempted Suicide and a Gory Discretion Shot notwithstanding. He was hanged.
- Konoe committed suicide after the events of the movie.
- Flashback: When Kōichi Kido meets Fellers. Feller's ones with Aya are of a different kind.
- General Ripper: Pretty much every Japanese military leader in the film. Many were involved in a coup trying to prevent the surrender, and their record of war crimes is referenced, with even the fairly benevolent General Kajima admitting he allowed himself and his men to descend to shameful levels. The Americans also have General Richter, although all he lacks the authority to make major policy decisions on his own.
- Glory Hound: For all his badassery, MacArthur sure does like to take a bunch of pictures. It's suggested that he wants to become the next President, and will perhaps throw Fellers under the bus to get there. It's left unclear whether any of this is actually true or just unfounded suspicions.
- God-Emperor: Hirohito's status throughout the war years. He gives up his status as a god after meeting MacArthur, though he retains his throne.
- Happy Ending: Fellers makes the good decision to advise MacArthur to make the good decision of accepting the Emperor's help with the reconstruction of Japan, rather than executing him as complicit in war crimes.
- I Need a Freaking Drink: Once the peace in Japan is saved, Fellers and Takahashi go for a drink.
- Ironic Echo: When Fellers first meets General Kajima before the war, he confidently declares that if fighting should start Japan will win due to their single-minded devotion to the emperor. When they meet after the war, Kajima laments that their single-minded devotion led them to do barbaric things.
- It's All My Fault: Hirohito offers to shoulder the entirety of the blame and subsequent punishment that he fears Japan will receive from the Allies. MacArthur thanks him for the sentiment, but assures the Emperor that he has no intention of leveling punishment upon him or any Japanese. What he wants is to get the country back on its feet and he needs Hirohito's help to do that.
- Jerkass Has a Point: Richter might be a bloodthirsty, vengeful asshole, but he's not wrong that General MacArthur sure does love his political theater, or that Fellers let his love for Aya compromise decision-making during the war by trying to avoid bombing her.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Despite MacArthur being instructed in proper Imperial meeting protocol, he ignores all of it, but the Emperor doesn't object. MacArthur stayed and helped the restoration of Japan until he was relieved by Truman.
- Knight Templar: General Richter is obsessed with getting Hirohito indicted regardless of his guilt or innocence and spends most of his screen time smugly trying to sow dissent between Fellers and MacArthur (with outright blackmail in a deleted scene) to make it less like likely that Fellers will recommend Hirohito will be let off, or that MacArthur will listen if he does.
- "Not So Different" Remark: Funimaro Konoe, former Prime Minister of Japan, pulls this on Fellers when discussing how international leaders had taken over lands in the past, and Japan was just following America's "fine example."
- Reasonable Authority Figure:
- MacArthur seems like a hard-nosed glory hound, but he takes his responsibility to rebuild Japan and prevent further bloodshed seriously and when he finally meets with the emperor he simply asks for Hirohito's help in doing just that.
- Hirohito proves to be quite reasonable, silencing his entourage when they object to MacArthur ignoring Imperial protocol and offering himself up to take whatever punishment MacArthur has planned (he doesn't) for the sake of his people.
- "The Reason You Suck" Speech: While talking with Takahashi, Fellers essentially says that the Imperial Japanese are evil while the Americans are the good guys, which Takahashi argues isn't a fair assessment to make; the United States, like the Japanese, are guilty of many imperialist actions and other atrocities, so why is America getting away with it when Japan can't?
- Scenery Gorn:
- Fellers strolls around Tokyo and several other places surveying the destruction caused by bombing raids.
- When Kōichi Kido recounts the 9th of August in Tokyo, all we can see are crumbling buildings in flames.
- Sophisticated as Hell: At the end of the movie when accepting Fellers recommendations, says that after consideration he's decided that General Richter can go piss up a rope.
- "Where Are They Now?" Epilogue: Historical movies usually have this, and this one's no exception, detailing the fates of Tojo, Konoe, Sekiya, Kido, Fellers, MacArthur and Hirohito.
