Sayonara

1957

Action / Drama / Romance

20
Rotten Tomatoes Critics - Certified Fresh 82% · 56 reviews
Rotten Tomatoes Audience - Upright 80% · 2.5K ratings
IMDb Rating 7.0/10 10 9004 9K

japan based on novel or book u.s. air force air force major interracial relationship

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Plot summary

Air Force Major Lloyd Gruver is reassigned to a Japanese air base and is confronted with US racial prejudice against the Japanese people. The issue is compounded because a number of the soldiers become romantically involved with Japanese women, in defiance of US military policy. Ordinarily, a by-the-book officer, Gruver must take a position when a buddy of his, an enlisted man, Joe Kelly, falls in love with a Japanese woman, Katsumi, and marries her. Gruver risks his position by serving as best man at the wedding ceremony.

Director

Joshua Logan Photo
Joshua Logan

Top cast

Marlon Brando Photo
Marlon Brando as Major Gruver
Kent Smith Photo
Kent Smith as General Webster
Dennis Hopper Photo
Dennis Hopper as MP in Kelly's House / MP at Tokyo Airport
Patricia Owens Photo
Patricia Owens as Eileen Webster
720p.BLU 1080p.BLU
1.07 GB
1280*548
English 2.0
Not Rated
Subtitles
23.976 fps
2 hr 27 min
Seeds 2
2.26 GB
1904*816
English 2.0
Not Rated
Subtitles
23.976 fps
2 hr 27 min
Seeds 8

Movie Reviews

Reviewed by CinemaSerf 6 / 10

Though it does try to deal with some

Though it does try to deal with some quite poignant issues, I’m afraid it struggles to engage as it plods along a bit too sedately for 2½ hours. It’s set in an immediately post-war Korea and sees “Joe” (Red Buttons) fall in love with a Japanese gal. Now that’s strictly against the rules of fraternisation and he risks an immediate court martial. It’s only going to get more precarious when he decides to marry “Katsumi” (Miyoshi Umeki) and he asks his all-American boss “Maj. Gruver” (Marlon Brando) if he’ll be the best man. Things are further complicated because not only is “Gruver” the son of a commanding general but he also doesn’t really comprehend why his friend would be willing to surrender his US citizenship just to marry this girl. As the story develops, we discover that “Gruver” is slated to marry “Eileen” (Patricia Owens) who’s also the child of a general - but there is soon a fly in that particular ointment as “Hana-ogi” (Miiko Taka) comes onto the scene and fairly rapidly the major begins to understand his friend “Joe” an whole lot more. Perhaps a little surprisingly, “Eileen” isn’t entirely unsympathetic and it’s largely through her characterisation that a light is shone on the attitudes of the occupying administration to dalliances, even marriages, of their personnel with the indigenous population. In many ways it’s quite an effective invitation to look at one’s own attitudes and clearly with wounds from WWII still fresh in the minds of many Americans, it uses the extremeness of these scenarios to offer some hope of reconciliation rising from the hatred, brutality and mistrust that has been successfully nurtured by a series of rules and regulations that seem designed not with any ethnicity in mind, but more to avoid an influx of “new” citizens to the USA after the troops have returned home. James Garner’s “Bailey” adds to the conundrum as he, too, is enamoured of a young and popular dancer but his contribution is somewhat undercooked. There is one especially torrid scene with the young “Katsumi” so desperate to conform that she is considering paying a quack doctor for her eyes to be “reset” - an appalling proposition at any time, but also quite indicative of a situation where true love prevailed and not just convenient sex. Despite that compelling mix of topics and two strongly emotional efforts from both Buttons and Umeki, Brando and Garner just aren’t really at the races here and there’s simply too much dialogue as it takes an interminable time to make it’s point. It does look good, the aesthetic is vivid and the dance routines evocative of a Korean culture that has, for many, just swapped one invader for another. It’s worth a watch, but could have been more focussed.
Reviewed by Wuchak 7 / 10

_**Brando’s romantic culture clash in Japan after WW2**_

_**Brando’s romantic culture clash in Japan after WW2**_ In 1951, an American Air Force pilot serving in Korea (Marlon Brando) is reassigned to Kobe, Japan, where he deals with his American fiancé (Patricia Owens) and a Japanese performer who attracts his attention (Miiko Taka). The problem is there’s a military order against fraternizing with indigenous women. James Garner and Red Buttons have peripheral roles while Ricardo Montalban is on hand as a famous Kabuki entertainer. “Sayonara” (1957) is a romantic drama highlighted by Brando’s performance as a genial Southern officer, the Japanese culture & locations, plus the quaint conventions of the time period, not to mention Garner in one of his earliest roles. It’s similar to “The Ugly American” (1963), but arguably better. “Désirée” (1954) is another apt comparison, despite taking placing during the Napoleonic era. The film is a little long at 2 hours, 27 minutes, but I didn’t mind. It was shot in Japan with some stuff done in Burbank & Hollywood. GRADE: B
Reviewed by Thanos_Alfie 7 / 10

A beautiful love story...

"Sayonara" is a Drama - Romance movie in which we watch a US Air Force major in Japan falling in love with a Japanese woman something that he would never expect since he was against to marriages between American men and Japanese women.

I enjoyed this movie because it had an interesting plot with a beautiful meaning. It presented a very sensitive and important subject of that time, something that made it even more interesting. The direction which was made by Joshua Logan, it was very good and I believe that he did an excellent job on it since he succeeded on presenting very well the main subject of the movie along with his main characters who did an equally good job under his guidance. Regarding the interpretations of the cast, both the interpretations of Marlon Brando who played as Major Lloyd Gruver and Miiko Taka who played as Hana-Ogi were very good but the best interpretations were made by Red Buttons who played as Joe Kelly and Miyoshi Umeki who played as Katsumi. In conclusion, I have to say that "Sayonara" is an emotional, beautiful love story that I strongly recommend everyone to watch because it will travel you back in time and you will follow this great story.

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