During the early years of the Sino-Japanese War, on the front lines in Northern China, a company commander sends five soldiers on a reconnaissance patrol, a mission that is nearly suicidal. The soldiers successfully scout the enemy's position but on their way back to base, they are ambushed, resulting in the loss of one man. The four surviving soldiers return to camp and mourn their fallen comrade, only for him to unexpectedly straggle back to camp later. He had become separated from the group in the darkness and chaos of battle.
With their mission complete, the soldiers are ordered to move out for another battle, fully aware that the likelihood of losing comrades this time is very high.
Five Scouts was the first significant Japanese feature film to depict the undeclared war in China. The government of Japan, eager to have films made which exalted the war effort, turned to Nikkatsu Studios because of their experience and expertise in making action films - even though they were usually in historic settings. Consequently Nikkatsu and Five Scouts set the style for future films of that genre.
Reception
Five Scouts was one of the first Japanese films to be shown at an international competition. When it played at the Venice Festival (the oldest of the international film festivals), it won the Ministry of Popular Culture award.
Beverley Bare Buehrer included Five Scouts in her book Japanese films: A Filmography and Commentary, writing "Tasaka, the director chosen to direct this pioneering film, was more well known for his character dramas. But it was just this bias towards creating convincing and compelling characters which made Five Scouts the success it was."[1]
References
^Buehrer, Beverley Bare. Japanese Films: A Filmography and Commentary, 1921-1989. McFarland & Co., Inc., 1990, p. 17.
