Review of Wings of Defeat: Once We Were Kamikaze

Review by NCTA teacher Brianne Brown (Pittsburgh)
10th Grade American History II (Reconstruction - Present Day)
Plum Senior High School
Film Analysis:
Wings of Defeat: Once We Were Kamikaze is a documentary film by Risa Morimoto and Linda Hoaglund. The film follows the stories of surviving kamikaze pilots in Japan and the perspectives of American sailors (their targets). When Risa Morimoto learned that her deceased uncle was a kamikaze, she set out to discover why. Risa grew up in the United States and was raised believing, what most Americans believe, that kamikazes were crazy Japanese pilots who killed themselves during World War II. Risa travelled to Japan to find out more because certainly her uncle wasn’t one of these ‘crazy’ pilots.
The film is full of firsthand accounts of what a kamikaze is and what the orders were during World War II in Japan. Risa interviewed many men who survived their kamikaze fate. Their stories are similar and different. Each man escaped his fate as a kamikaze pilot, but their stories differ. Each speaks about the honor and dignity that was forced upon them by their culture (Emperor Hirohito). To my surprise, most of the pilots spoke negatively about the emperor, his decisions during the war, and their orders as kamikaze pilots. They knew they were dying for their country and they should be honored and happy to die such an admirable death, but many of them focused on the lives they would never know after they completed their missions.
The film itself is an excellent resource when teaching about World War II. I would suggest the film/curriculum unit to upper class (11th or 12th grade) history classes. There are some disturbing images that may not be suitable for students in 10th grade or below. In addition, there is a small amount of cursing in the film.
Curriculum Unit:
Accompanying the film is an excellent curriculum unit. I cannot praise this enough! The unit begins with suggestions for usage (courses and grade levels), a list of connection to National History Standards, an incredible amount of essential questions, and suggested objectives for the classroom. Pages 15 and 16 offer five days worth of suggested procedures. On page 13 of the curriculum unit, you will find a table of contents for the materials within the unit. This is most impressive. Any material or supplemental lesson you could think of is included in this curriculum unit.
Resources included in the curriculum unit:
• Multiple Choice/True-False Quiz: An excellent tool to ensure understanding of the material reviewed in the film. The quiz is 10 questions in length and is not too challenging if the students pay attention to the film.
• Maps of Japan: Wonderful resource for the students to get before they view the film. These detailed maps will aid the students in understanding the places described in the film.
• Map of Asia/Pacific Region: Compliments the maps of Japan. Another great tool for students to use to aid in their understanding of the places described in the film.
• A list of people in Wings of Defeat and a list of the terminology: I would suggest creating a small packet of handouts for students to review before watching the film. The packet would include the maps (described above), the list of people who appear in Wings of Defeat, and the list of terminology used. This will help students gain an understanding of the background information before viewing the film and will enhance their knowledge of the subject.
• Small Group Activities:
o Personal Objects: This is an activity where students are asked to read a small paragraph and look at pictures of Japanese objects. It is explained that many of the objects hold certain significance to Japanese people in their culture. The task is to imagine you are about to embark on a risky or uncertain mission. Each person in the group is only allowed to bring one personal object. What would it be, why, and draw a picture of it. This is a great exercise for students to discuss what is important to them and to identify with the young Japanese kamikaze pilots.
o Slogans: This exercise asks students to look at World War II slogans from Japan and those from the United States. Students are asked to compare and contrast the slogans and prepare a power point presentation of slogans to present to the class. I like this exercise as a discussion piece. I think the power point could be excluded and the slogans could be used as a discussion piece. Or the students could create their own slogans.
o Diaries: Students are asked to read sample diary entries from Japanese soldiers and to either write a poem or draw a picture that captures the essence of the entry. This is a fantastic exercise. Students have a chance to personally connect with the soldiers and utilize their artistic or written abilities.
o U.S. and Japanese Newsreels: Narratives from U.S. and Japanese newsreels are provided. Students are asked to read them and research/discuss six questions. The assignment is to develop a poster than includes a summary of the research and discussion. As an optional assignment, students who have access to a video camera can develop a one or two minute newsreel. I like this activity but I don’t think many students have access to video cameras and that is the great part about this assignment.
o Music: This activity asks students to Analyze Japanese lyrics and compare to American lyrics (“Furusato” and “America the Beautiful”). The second activity asks students who play an instrument to compose their own short tune that expresses the situation/feelings of a kamikaze. I like this activity, but again, most students probably don’t have access to/or play an instrument. This might also take a large amount of instruction time.
o Graphic Images: Students are asked to research graphic images used in a war (past or present) and create one page of a newspaper about that war based on the graphic images.
o Memorials: Asks students to write a poem about an experience they’ve had when they honored someone. This is a great writing exercise and forces the students to connect to the kamikaze pilots and their families on a deeper level.
o Film Reviews: Students are asked to write a film review for Wings of Defeat. This activity is two-fold. 1 – Students practice writing and analyzing the film. 2 – The instructor receives feedback on how the film was received by the students.
• Small Group Activities – Examination of Quotes:
o There are six activities on different perspectives of kamikazes and kamikaze strategies. These are great for discussion. Discussion prompts are provided.
This curriculum unit has so many activities; instructors would need to pick and choose wisely. I don’t think anyone has enough instruction time to incorporate all of them. They are all rich in rigor and relevance. I really enjoyed the film and found the curriculum unit to be a fabulous tool for teachers. I highly recommend this curriculum unit (again, only to upper class social studies courses).