00:00Beijing cinemas are abuzz, as fans prepare for what's expected to be China's newest hit thriller, 731.
00:07For some invited to the premiere, like social media influencer Dao Wei, the release is more than just a film.
00:14When the movie was being filmed, I was already interested.
00:18I think Chinese people should understand this history. I think this concerns all Chinese people.
00:24Set in China's northeast, the film tells the story of the deadly human experiments conducted by Imperial Japan on civilians during Tokyo's occupation of China.
00:33It's the latest in a series of patriotic movies that shine an important light on Japan's war crimes.
00:39But detractors like film critic and podcaster Ma Gao say it also serves a second purpose, shaping national identity.
00:47This film's marketing strategy carries a right-wing flavor and is a kind of emotional manipulation tied to nationalism.
00:54Right-wing works like this are essentially self-indulgent, aimed at a domestic audience. They're internal propaganda.
01:00Despite this, the film is also set for international release.
01:04And its producers argue it will spread the knowledge about Imperial Japan's actions, long a hot topic in China, across the globe.
01:10It's museums like this one here that remind people of the horrors inflicted on China by Imperial Japan.
01:18But while there's high awareness of these things here, Beijing still says that Tokyo has never truly confronted that element of the country's history.
01:26And it's something that still shapes people's views of Japan to this day.
01:29If the aggressor does not reflect and instead insists on denying what happened and falsifying history, then how could we, the victims, ever forget?
01:40From what I see online, many of them still haven't recognized reality, haven't acknowledged history.
01:45I hope they can acknowledge history.
01:47Some of them may still be denying this part of history, but some others are admitting their ancestors' mistakes and asking for forgiveness.
01:56From packed-out cinemas to crowded war museums, 731's release highlights that 94 years on, Japan's invasion still weighs heavy on the minds of many in China.
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