Oct 24
International Film Forum: FREEDOM MOON
Freedom Moon (Kim Sungwoon, Japan, 2016, 119 min.) – Presented by Noboru Tomonari, Skype Q&A with director Kim Sungwoon
“Before dawn on June 30, 1966, in Shizuoka Prefecture, a family of four who ran a miso company were killed and burned. This is referred to as the ‘Hakamada Incident.’ Iwao Hakamada, an employee, was accused of the crime due to prejudice that ‘a former boxer would do such a thing’ and was arrested. After lengthy and brutal interrogations, he was forced to confess. Iwao consistently maintained his innocence, but the court sentenced him to death. Since then, he has continued to request a retrial, and from prison, claimed his innocence. […] [Freedom Moon] draws close to the ‘ordinary life after 48 years’ of a man, who was incarcerated for 48 years facing death, as he regains his lost time and identity, and quietly tells a story of the preciousness of ‘living.’” (http://www.hakamada-movie.com/english/)