World War III Breaks Out
Entry updated 6 March 2023. Tagged: Film.
Japanese film (1960). Original title Dai-sanji sekai taisen: Yonjû-ichi jikan no kyôfu; vt The Final War; vt World War III 41 Hours of Fear. Toei Company. Directed by Shigeaki Hidaka. Written by Hisataka Kai, based on a story by Shukan Shincho. Cast includes Michiko Hoshi, Yoshi Kato, Yukiko Nikaido, Yoshiko Mita and Tatsuo Umemiya. 75 minutes. Black and white.
The film opens with slides showing the corpses of babies killed in World War Two, part of a teacher's presentation to his pupils; he points out that the hydrogen bomb is more powerful than its atomic predecessor and that the present-day world is unstable, adding "some young people commit violent acts without thinking – having such an attitude leads to War between countries". For the first 25 minutes we meet the four sets of people we will follow through the remainder of the film: the family of worried teenager Shigeo (Umemiya), whose response to his single-parent father's insistence he study is to ask what is the point if war will leave no one alive. A journalist who wants to report on the current social unrest, but also frets about his nurse girlfriend's reluctance to get married, as she is concerned about her patients. A musician who has sacrificed his ambitions to care for his invalid wife. There is also a complacent businessman and his family.
Then the radio announces an American plane carrying a nuclear warhead has been hit by a North Korean rocket and exploded over South Korea, killing thousands. Matters escalate, with the Soviet Union and China drawn in; the sizeable American military presence in Japan means people worry about possible Soviet bombing raids: a state of emergency is declared. The businessman quickly panics and flees Tokyo with his family – his car runs over Shigeo's father but he does not stop, earning the contempt of his children. When the UN negotiations break down the Government says war is inevitable (see World War Three) and people should leave Tokyo: an exodus begins. A few people stay behind, including the nurse to care for a sickly child and the musician couple.
Moscow broadcasts a message to Japan: "We have asked the Japanese many times to admit their wartime guilt ... and now we are attacked by American jets coming from bases on your soil ... we will destroy Japan's ability to host these attacks." A strike will be launched in 12 minutes 40 seconds – "To the people of Japan, goodbye." The Americans respond, "Our counterattacks will destroy not only the Soviets but unavoidably, most likely, all of humanity as well ... so we reluctantly send this final and sincere message of farewell to all the people of the world." The people of Japan wait, the Soviet bombs drop and the radioactive ash begins to fall. Nuclear destruction follows throughout the world. The closing moments of the film are a radio broadcast from Argentina reporting 2 billion of the world's 2.8 billion population have died (see Holocaust); the Government of Argentina will work with other survivors to rebuild humanity (see Post-Holocaust). "We declare ... World War Four will never occur."
This is a moving, well-made film with solid acting performances, reflecting the concerns of the Cold War era. Though we have the destruction of Tokyo – and most of the world – it is not really a Tokusatsu movie, as the special effects comprise only a few minutes near the end. A version of this film was released for American television and named Final War (see below). Another Japanese film, Sekai Daisenso (1961, vt The Great World War), produced by the Toho company, had some plot similarities, including a world war caused by events in Korea: when it was eventually released in the USA on video it was also called The Final War.
As mentioned, like many Japanese films of its era, World War III Breaks Out was re-dubbed in English and edited for American television, with the story altered. Titled The Final War (release date unknown, though likely mid/late 1960s), this film might be lost, so these changes cannot be confirmed; however, secondary sources report that it ended with a voice-over announcing that the war killed everyone. Another change seems to be the insertion of scenes from Invasion of the Neptune Men (1961) showing the destruction of Tokyo by flying saucers (see UFOs), here identified as Russian craft. [SP]
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