Last but definitely not least, we arrive at the final entry in The Human Condition series. I will begin by saying that it's typically very unusual to have a second sequel that actually works, but the truth is, this third movie might actually be a huge upgrade over the other two. Make no mistake, the first two movies in the trilogy are both extremely well made. 10 out of 10 without a doubt. The reason why A Soldier's Prayer might be better than them is because it brings an end to Kaji's long and difficult journey. Some might be disappointed with how he ends up, but the entire point of these movies is to be non-stop drama. There's few laughable moments, if any. Picking up where the previous movie left off, A Soldier's Prayer starts with Kaji still being stranded behind russian lines in northern china following the crushing blow the USSR has delivered to japanese forces in the area. Kaji manages to find some other survivors who have managed to escape soviet patrols, and he teams up with them. As they venture south, they come across some civilians who decide to follow Kaji. This leads to a nightmare of a situation, since they become lost in a heavily wooded area and have very little food. Some of them can't resist eating the poisonous mushrooms that are present here. Eventually, Kaji and the others come across a house which has an ample supply of food, but they are ambushed by chinese guerilla fighters. After managing to lose them in a wheat field that was set ablaze, Kaji finds out that some nearby japanese soldiers are planning to fight for Chiang Kai Shek, the leader of chinese nationalist forces and rival to Mao Zedong, the ambitious communist who wants to see china become a socialist state. The Soviet Union's obvious course of action is to support Mao's army, as Stalin knows communist china will be a powerful ally against america. With the help of these newly found soldiers, Kaji and them manage to kill a small force of patrolling russians. Kaji and the others are tempted to take their weapons, but they leave them where they are. Soon, the men arrive at a small village, which appears safe enough, only to learn that soviet soldiers are preparing to attack the position. Rather than subject himself and others to another onslaught, Kaji gives up when they arrive. The way the soviets treat him in captivity has him wishing that he didn't. The russians view japanese prisoners of war as the scum of the earth, similar to how they saw german ones. Kaji and the others are sent to a freezing cold labor camp in the middle of nowhere, and the japanese officers who were supposed to be on Kaji's side are now friends with the russian officers who run the camp. Men are beaten, starved, and brutalized for not working hard enough, which is ironically what japan was doing to the chinese in manchuria. Just like the second film, Kaji is suspected of something, in this case sabotage, and is brought before a soviet officer to explain his motives. Kaji can't speak russian, so his only means of communicating are through an interpreter, who lies to his comrade and tells him Kaji is saying disrespectful things about the USSR. With his life in the camp continuing to get worse, Kaji finally decides to escape, stopping on the way to kill a corrupt officer who was responsible for mistreating one of his friends. Kaji doesn't know where he's going at this point, or even if he'll ever see japan again. He tries to stay determined, but he doesn't get much further. The seemingly endless, freezing landscape becomes his downfall, and Kaji collapses in the snow. Kaji is no more, but he never lost hope that he would make it back to japan and his wife Michiko somehow. I've said this for the previous two films as well, but I'll still repeat myself here: this movie hits the ball out of the park. Like always, Nakadai's acting is one of the best aspects of the experience, alongside the history that the storyline is intertwined with. World war 2 is now over, and it's the beginning of the cold war. We see in the movie how the japanese left in china are willing to fight alongside them to stop Mao's communist plans. This seems unthinkable because the japanese had abused chinese laborers liberally in the first film, but now, they're willing to stand together against the larger threat of communism. This movie, just like the last two, is filled with iconic and memorable scenes, such as the part where Kaji witnesses the soviet guards in the camp singing katyusha, and is reminded that they're actual humans. The part that has him surrendering to the russians as they approach the village is also one of the best, since it shows how even he realizes that it's pointless to go on. Large swaths of northern china are now under Stalin's rule, and walking for hours on end to escape the soviets is futile. While I thought A Soldier's Prayer is a nearly perfect movie, I didn't really like how Michiko doesn't make a return. This is sad because it makes you realize the last time Kaji saw his wife was in the second movie, and he will never see her again now. Still, this last entry brings a sad and extremely powerful ending to one of the best movie series in history. It's been a long ride, but The Human Condition as a whole is a masterfully done trilogy. It is ridiculously long, but the acting, characters, and tense atmosphere of all three films more than compensates for this. If you're like me and enjoy world war 2 history, these 3 movies are incredibly important because they tell tragic stories from the japanese perspective.
