Nanking (2007)
93%RT Audience Score: 88%
Awards & Nominations: 7 wins & 5 nominations
This powerful and horrific documentary brings the atrocities committed at Nanking to light without sugarcoating any of the brutality.
Nanking is a documentary that sheds light on the atrocities committed during the Japanese invasion of Nanking in 1937. While the film is a sobering reminder of the horrors of war, it also manages to be a hopeful testament to the resilience of the human spirit. The film’s use of historic photos and film footage, as well as readings by a cast of actors, creates a powerful and emotional experience that will stay with you long after the credits roll. Plus, it’s a great way to learn some history without having to read a boring textbook!
Production Company(ies)
Mass Distraction Media, Radical Media, Vulcan Productions,
Distributor
NA
Release Type
Filming Location(s)
China
MPAA / Certificate
Rated R for disturbing images and descriptions of wartime atrocities, including rape
Year of Release
2007
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Dolby Digital
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Aspect ratio:1.85 : 1
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Runtime:NA
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Language(s):Japanese, Mandarin, English
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Country of origin:United States
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Release date:Release Date (Streaming): Apr 29, 2008
Genre(s)
Documentary
Keyword(s)
documentary, Nanking, Japanese invasion, 1937, Chinese refugees, John Rabe, Jürgen Prochnow, Bob Wilson, Woody Harrelson, Minnie Vautrin, Mariel Hemingway, German businessman, surgeon, American missionary, archival footage, cinematic recreations, box office, gross USA, budget, directed by Bill Guttentag, written by Bill Guttentag, reviewed by Mark Holcomb, Ben Kenigsberg, Lisa Schwarzbaum, Jonathan F Richards, Sid Smith, Tom Keogh, Richard Propes, Kelly Vance, Ian Buckwalter, James Wegg, James Verniere, Robert W Butler, produced by Bill Guttentag, MPAA rating R, genre Documentary, original language Japanese, Hugo Armstrong, Rosalind Chao, Stephen Dorff, John Getz, Michelle Krusiec
Worldwide gross: $1,566,248
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $2,243,757
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,382
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 244,684
US/Canada gross: $161,182
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $230,904
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,516
US/Canada opening weekend: $6,316
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $9,048
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,722
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): NA
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): NA
Production budget ranking: NA
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
ROI to date (est.): NA
ROI ranking: NA
Rosalind Chao – Chang Yu Zheng
Stephen Dorff – Lewis Smythe
John Getz – George Fitch
Mariel Hemingway – Minnie Vautrin
Michelle Krusiec – Yang Shu Ling
Director(s)
Bill Guttentag
Writer(s)
NA
Producer(s)
NA
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
7 wins & 5 nominations
Academy Awards
All Critics (47) | Top Critics (18) | Fresh (45) | Rotten (2)
November 18, 2011 | Rating: 3/5
Mark Holcomb
Time Out
TOP CRITIC
November 17, 2011 | Rating: 3/5
Ben Kenigsberg
Time Out
TOP CRITIC
September 7, 2011 | Rating: B-
Lisa Schwarzbaum
Entertainment Weekly
TOP CRITIC
The lesson here is not simply to vilify the Japanese soldiers of that era, but to make sure that we never forget who we are and what our country stands for today.
April 13, 2008
Jonathan F. Richards
Film.com
TOP CRITIC
Sheds light on particular wartime atrocities largely neglected in the collective memory.
February 1, 2008 | Rating: 3/4
Sid Smith
Chicago Tribune
TOP CRITIC
Nanking doesn’t tell us why decency and compassion completely break down from time to time. It just tells us something terribly modern and all too familiar.
February 1, 2008 | Rating: 3/4
Tom Keogh
Seattle Times
TOP CRITIC
One of 2007’s most important documentaries.
September 17, 2020 | Rating: 3.5/4.0
Richard Propes
TheIndependentCritic.com
This painful documentary ends on a hopeful note, although with a clear view of the cloud over human nature.
April 28, 2011
Kelly Vance
East Bay Express
A noble effort, but a flawed delivery. The film would benefit from more time spent with the real survivors, and less with actors tasked with “playing” the Western saviors.
June 12, 2010 | Rating: 5/10
Ian Buckwalter
DCist
Living through a screening of … the 1937/8 Japanese invasion, devastation and occupation of Nanking creates a fervent wish to have nothing o do with our membership cards in the homo sapiens species.
July 23, 2009 | Rating: 3.5/5
James Wegg
JWR
October 18, 2008 | Rating: B+
James Verniere
Boston Herald
A deft and dramatic melding of talking-head documentary, historic photos and film footage and readings by a cast of actors, the film is a devastating depiction of man’s inhumanity to man. It is also about how some of us are brave enough to say ‘No.’
March 14, 2008 | Rating: 3.5/4
Robert W. Butler
Kansas City Star…
Plot
“Nanking” tells the story of the rape of Nanking, one of the most tragic events in history. In 1937, the invading Japanese army murdered over 200,000 and raped tens of thousands of Chinese. In the midst of the horror, a small group of Western expatriates banded together to save 250,000
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
Mariel Hemingway plays American missionary Minnie Vautrin in Nanking.
Bill-Guttentag.jpg
