Thought this film was excellent with a solid cast. Negative reviews came from the premise that it was hackneyed and trite. Bet those reviews came from Gen X viewers who never experienced war or incarceration up close or could not begin to imagine the horrors of WWII. Hard to reconcile Modern day Japanese culture with the monsters capable of horrific deeds. Founded in fact though, so check your history books - not the ones written in modern day Japan.