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Poster for Philosophy of a Knife

Philosophy of a Knife

2008 · 249 min

A grueling, four-hour descent into real historical atrocity, blending testimony with graphic reenactments that leave you shaken and numb.

Tagline
God created Heaven. Man created Hell.
Overview
The true history of Japanese Unit 731, from its beginnings in the 1930s to its demise in 1945, and the subsequent trials in Khabarovsk, USSR, of many of the Japanese doctors from Unit 731. The facts are told, and previously unknown evidence is revealed by an eyewitness to these events, former doctor and military translator, Anatoly Protasov.

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How it feels

Written by AI. It can be wrong.

Tone
  • darkstrength 3 of 3
  • bleakstrength 3 of 3
  • eeriestrength 2 of 3
  • tensestrength 2 of 3
Pacing
slow-burn, 1 of 4, from slow-burn to relentless
Attention
demanding, 4 of 4, from background-friendly to demanding
Themes
  • war
  • violence
  • death
  • morality
  • guilt
Places
  • military
  • hospital
Era
period
Audience
adult
Form
  • documentary
  • true story
  • nonlinear
Content intensity
  • Gore strong
  • Language mild
  • Violence strong
  • Sex mild
All scales, 0 to 10
Scales, 0 to 10
ScaleValue0 to 10
Action2
Horror9
Humour0
Realism8
Romance0
Tension7
Darkness10
Complexity6
Emotional weight10

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Where to watch in the UK

No UK streaming, rental or purchase options are known.

Streaming data from JustWatch.TMDB

Details

Genres
drama, horror, documentary
Directed by
Andrey Iskanov
Written by
Andrey Iskanov
Starring
Tomoya Okamoto, Elena Probatova, Anatoly Protasov, Tetsuro Sakagami, Artem Seleznyov, Victor Silkin, Dmitriy Skripnik, Alyona Strebkova
Music
Alexandr Shevchenko
Cinematography
Andrey Iskanov
Runtime
249 min
Country
Russia
Languages
English, Russian

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