Introduction
Jonathan Teplitzky’s powerful and thought-provoking film “The Railway Man” (2013) sets World War II’s tragedies against the Japanese occupation and the Burma-Siam Railway. This unusual assessment investigates the film’s IHL effects beyond plot summaries. For critical engagement, it evaluates on-screen IHL violations against regulations. Finally, this technique begs consideration of its usage and ramifications.
This review examines whether the film accurately addresses international humanitarian law (IHL) issues. Through the war’s leading players, POW treatment, torture, and forced labour to compel confessions are examined. This essay illuminates “The Railway Man”‘s protagonists’ moral dilemmas and socio-legal repercussions.
Exploring the intricately intertwined world of IHL within the gripping tale “The Railway Man” tells a compelling story and allows viewers to examine IHL in crisis. This exercise critically examines IHL concepts and their practical implementation in everyday situations to emphasize IHL’s role in defending human rights in wartime.
Overview of the Film
The 2013 drama “The Railway Man” takes viewers to World War II and the Japanese occupation. The movie accurately depicts war’s horrors. As railroad-loving British officer Eric Lomax, Colin Firth succeeds. Japan takes him after Singapore falls. Together with Stellan Skarsgrd’s Finlay, they endured war crimes.
The film encourages perseverance, repentance, and peacemaking. POW life affects the characters’ pain resolution[1]. Their suffering drives the tale. Lomax wants forgiveness from his past and the Japanese commander who mistreated him.
This film illustrates POW’s struggles. The Burma-Siam Railway building, which killed many, dominated the plot. These magnificent views and emotional performances reflect hard-working people’s physical and mental agony. These horrible images recall war’s horrors.
The movie’s characters illuminate IHL. IHL’s ideas and new implementation are essential because Eric Lomax and the other hostages struggled. The following parts will analyze a smaller portion of the film’s IHL issues and how they compare to legal norms.
III. International Humanitarian Law (IHL): Background and Importance
Controlling all sides’ activities in armed conflicts requires international humanitarian law (IHL), sometimes known as the rules of war[2]. Its principal purpose is to reduce suffering through violence. IHL works for individual rights and dignity even in the most terrible armed combat since it is based on humanity[3]. IHL rules global and national military conflicts. Standardize military and civilian care and protection. International humanitarian law (IHL) distinguishes combatants from civilians[4]. This principle prioritizes maintaining the intrinsic value of all conflict victims.
International humanitarian law must protect POWs. The Third Geneva Convention protects POWs from torture and offers medical care.[5]. IHL always outlaws torture and other cruel crimes[6]. Wartime human rights protection depends on IHL. Its ideas are crucial for wartime brutality reduction and law enforcement. This analysis analyses IHL principles in “The Railway Man.” to better understand their complexities and limitations in conflict. We’ll examine the film’s IHL issues, their legality, and their impact on society.
Discussion of Specific IHL Issues in the Film
Treatment of Prisoners of War (POWs)
The movie severely depicts Japanese captors’ abuse of POWs, showing their utter contempt for IHL. The Third Geneva Convention, a fundamental international humanitarian treaty, sets criteria for POW care.[7]. A humanitarian approach is needed, including safety from assault, intimidation, and medical care. Unfortunately, the video depicts prisoner mistreatment, hardship, and degradation, departing from these values.
While building the Burma-Siam Railway, the Japanese captors abused POWs and put them in danger, demonstrating their disregard for IHL. International Humanitarian Law and the POW Convention ban forced labour[8][9]. This film depicts the dismal possibility of international humanitarian law violations during the war.
Torture and Ill-Treatment of Captives
International humanitarian law (IHL) prohibits torture and other inhumane treatment[10]. However, “The Railway Man” shows terrible physical and mental torture of hostages. Our protagonist, Eric Lomax, is tortured to inhumanity. These situations create ethical questions about depicting such transgressions in cinema narratives.
International humanitarian law (IHL) and its challenges are examined in the video due to the abuse shown. Although torture is officially outlawed by international humanitarian law (IHL), the film indicates that it is not always observed. The mismatch between the movie’s depiction of torture and IHL’s universal rejection can spark conversations about the difficulties of applying such principles.
Forced Labor and Forced Confessions
Even in battle, International Humanitarian Law (IHL) protects human rights and dignity[11]. The riveting film “The Railway Man” exposes how forced work on war prisoners building railway lines harmed them. A sharp contrast between IHL principles and wartime employment’s dangerous working conditions and persistent exploitation is shown in the film.
The film discusses forced confessions, which violate International Humanitarian Law. To coerce detainees into confessing, physical and emotional torture is used. Torture and other brutal treatment are illegal and lower data trustworthiness.[12]. The film reveals wartime-compelled confessions’ moral and legal grey spots.
Deconstructing the film’s representation of individual concerns helps us understand how difficult it is to implement and uphold IHL norms during war. The following sections will examine the film’s portrayal of IHL’s responsibility and its broader implications.
IHL Implementation and Accountability
In armed conflicts, IHL is complicated.[13]. IHL safeguards human rights in combat, but conflict dynamics and party actions make it hard to apply[14]. Punishing international humanitarian law offenders is challenging, as The Railway Man shows. Parties must follow international humanitarian law for it to work. Armed groups and the state must cooperate.[15]. The tape shows POWs being abused, made to work, and tortured, violating IHL. These violations show that IHL enforcement procedures differ from norms.
The film discusses the difficulties of holding IHL violators accountable without going into detail. Using domestic and international courts to determine fault illustrates international humanitarian law.[16]. Real-world conflicts make arresting and punishing culprits difficult. “The Railway Man.” examines IHL abuses and the never-ending fight for justice. Eric Lomax’s yearning for resolution mirrors humanity’s prosecution of violations of international humanitarian law. According to IHL, the work addresses complex issues, including justice, forgiveness, and healing.
The film effectively addresses IHL’s applicability and duty. It emphasizes coordinated international activities to ensure IHL compliance and implement violation procedures. Our evaluation of the film will focus on the moral and ethical challenges presented by IHL violations and their widespread impact on persons and communities.
Ethical and Moral Dilemmas
Because of IHL violations, “The Railway Man” explores complicated moral and ethical issues. The film’s protagonists fight as perpetrators and victims. These issues show how personal morality, war, and IHL are interconnected. The extraordinary life of Eric Lomax shows how IHL violations create psychological distress. He uses his horrific torture and trauma experience to demonstrate how such atrocities can erode self-esteem, values, and forgiveness. The film exposes how IHL crimes destroy civilizations and leave lifetime wounds via Lomax’s post-conflict struggle.
The film examines IHL offenders’ moral dilemmas. Nagase struggles with Japanese officer morality. His captor-to-victim shift poses culpability and redemption questions. The wrongdoers’ inner struggles strengthen the film’s IHL representation. The film’s moral and ethical challenges show IHL’s complexity and make viewers rethink empathy, tolerance, and punishment. Eric Lomax’s decision to contact his captor shows the challenges of reconciliation, a long, twisting path with emotional intricacies that can only be grasped by understanding war personally. “The Railway Man” shows how breaking international humanitarian law affects people’s emotions and actions. Other parts of this review will address how such breaches influence people and civilizations in the film.
VII. Impacts of IHL Violations
“The Railway Man.” powerfully shows IHL infractions’ permanent cost. The film shows war crimes’ physical, psychological, and emotional effects.
The film shows the dire consequences of ignoring IHL by forcing POWs to build the Burma-Siam Railway. The detainees’ health suffered from rigorous work and conditions. This graphic illustrates the hardships of war and the actual cost of IHL infractions. This DVD shows how IHL infractions affect the body and mind. Prison torture and forced confessions affected Eric Lomax’s mental health. His PTSD and emotional pain show how armed warfare may permanently impair mental health, especially when IHL standards aren’t followed. The movie’s saddest sequence depicts battle trauma’s effects.
“The Railway Man” discusses IHL violations’ social effects and his own. The video subtly suggests these acts hurt relationships and communities. The film shows how IHL violations cause conflict through violence and revenge. “The Railway Man” depicts the social, psychological, and physical impacts of IHL violations to emphasize their prevention. This touching film reminds us that such breaches affect individuals, groups, and communities long after hostilities end. This analysis will examine the film’s IHL depictions and conclude.
VIII. Conclusion
“The Railway Man” (2013) examines IHL, accountability, fairness, and compassion. The video addresses taboo themes like torture, forced labour, and prisoner-of-war treatment. The film shows how moral dilemmas arise in armed conflicts by comparing its description with contemporary IHL concepts. The film’s explanation of international humanitarian law (IHL) accountability and justice contributes to the current conversation about respecting IHL principles and overcoming impediments to holding individuals or groups accountable. It also emphasizes the personal nature of international humanitarian law infractions, making viewers consider pity, forgiveness, and repentance.
Beyond its simple premise, “The Railway Man” has become a cultural icon for representing the severe consequences of violating international humanitarian law. It shows captives’ physical and mental anguish to stress the war’s severity. The film warns of the dire repercussions of violating IHL norms protecting human rights. The cinema medium lets us reflect on our role in eradicating such injustices. “The Railway Man” shows how movies can spark discussions about war’s intricacies, IHL violations, and the human desire for peace despite brutal combat.
References
Gorin, Valérie. “Looking Back over 150 Years of Humanitarian Action: The Photographic Archives of the ICRC.” International Review of the Red Cross 94, no. 888 (December 2012): 1349–79. doi:https://doi.org/10.1017/s1816383113000568.
International Committee of the Red Cross. “The Geneva Conventions of 1949 and Their Additional Protocols – ICRC.” Icrc.org, 2010. https://www.icrc.org/en/doc/war-and-law/treaties-customary-law/geneva-conventions/overview-geneva-conventions.htm.
Müller, Amrei. “Situations of Active Combat: Integrating the Right to Health in IHL Military-Target Decisions.” The Relationship between Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and International Humanitarian Law, 2013, 149–89. https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004245280_007.
[1] Christina Twomey, “POWs of the Japanese: Race and Trauma in Australia, 1970–2005,” Journal of War & Culture Studies 7, no. 3 (July 17, 2014): 191–205, doi:https://doi.org/10.1179/1752627214z.00000000043.
[2] 1. Amrei Müller, “Situations of Active Combat: Integrating the Right to Health in IHL Military-Target Decisions,” The Relationship between Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and International Humanitarian Law, 2013, 149–89, https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004245280_007.
[3] Valérie Gorin, “Looking Back over 150 Years of Humanitarian Action: The Photographic Archives of the ICRC,” International Review of the Red Cross 94, no. 888 (December 2012): 1349–79, doi:https://doi.org/10.1017/s1816383113000568.
[4] 1. Amrei Müller, “Situations of Active Combat: Integrating the Right to Health in IHL Military-Target Decisions,” The Relationship between Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and International Humanitarian Law, 2013, 149–89, https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004245280_007.
[5] International Committee of the Red Cross, “The Geneva Conventions of 1949 and Their Additional Protocols – ICRC,” Icrc.org, 2010, https://www.icrc.org/en/doc/war-and-law/treaties-customary-law/geneva-conventions/overview-geneva-conventions.htm.
[6] 1. Amrei Müller, “Situations of Active Combat: Integrating the Right to Health in IHL Military-Target Decisions,” The Relationship between Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and International Humanitarian Law, 2013, 149–89, https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004245280_007.
[7] International Committee of the Red Cross, “The Geneva Conventions of 1949 and Their Additional Protocols – ICRC,” Icrc.org, 2010, https://www.icrc.org/en/doc/war-and-law/treaties-customary-law/geneva-conventions/overview-geneva-conventions.htm.
[8] Christina Twomey, “POWs of the Japanese: Race and Trauma in Australia, 1970–2005,” Journal of War & Culture Studies 7, no. 3 (July 17, 2014): 191–205, doi:https://doi.org/10.1179/1752627214z.00000000043.
[9] 1. Amrei Müller, “Situations of Active Combat: Integrating the Right to Health in IHL Military-Target Decisions,” The Relationship between Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and International Humanitarian Law, 2013, 149–89, https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004245280_007.
[10] 1. Amrei Müller, “Situations of Active Combat: Integrating the Right to Health in IHL Military-Target Decisions,” The Relationship between Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and International Humanitarian Law, 2013, 149–89, https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004245280_007.
[11] 1. Amrei Müller, “Situations of Active Combat: Integrating the Right to Health in IHL Military-Target Decisions,” The Relationship between Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and International Humanitarian Law, 2013, 149–89, https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004245280_007.
[12] International Committee of the Red Cross, “The Geneva Conventions of 1949 and Their Additional Protocols – ICRC,” Icrc.org, 2010, https://www.icrc.org/en/doc/war-and-law/treaties-customary-law/geneva-conventions/overview-geneva-conventions.htm.
[13] Valérie Gorin, “Looking Back over 150 Years of Humanitarian Action: The Photographic Archives of the ICRC,” International Review of the Red Cross 94, no. 888 (December 2012): 1349–79, doi:https://doi.org/10.1017/s1816383113000568.
[14] International Committee of the Red Cross, “The Geneva Conventions of 1949 and Their Additional Protocols – ICRC,” Icrc.org, 2010, https://www.icrc.org/en/doc/war-and-law/treaties-customary-law/geneva-conventions/overview-geneva-conventions.htm.
[15] Valérie Gorin, “Looking Back over 150 Years of Humanitarian Action: The Photographic Archives of the ICRC,” International Review of the Red Cross 94, no. 888 (December 2012): 1349–79, doi:https://doi.org/10.1017/s1816383113000568.
[16] International Committee of the Red Cross, “The Geneva Conventions of 1949 and Their Additional Protocols – ICRC,” Icrc.org, 2010, https://www.icrc.org/en/doc/war-and-law/treaties-customary-law/geneva-conventions/overview-geneva-conventions.htm.
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