''Only the Brave'' is a 2006 independent film about the

100th Infantry Battalion The 100th Infantry Battalion ( ja, 第100歩兵大隊, ''Dai Hyaku Hohei Daitai'') is the only infantry unit in the United States Army Reserve. In World War II, the then-primarily Nisei battalion was composed largely of former members of the Haw ...

442nd Regimental Combat Team The 442nd Infantry Regiment ( ja, 第442歩兵連隊) was an infantry regiment of the United States Army. The regiment is best known as the most decorated in U.S. military history and as a fighting unit composed almost entirely of second-gene ...

, a segregated

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

fighting unit primarily made up of "

Nisei is a Japanese-language term used in countries in North America and South America to specify the ethnically Japanese children born in the new country to Japanese-born immigrants (who are called ). The are considered the second generation, ...

Japanese American are Americans of Japanese ancestry. Japanese Americans were among the three largest Asian American ethnic communities during the 20th century; but, according to the 2000 census, they have declined in number to constitute the sixth largest Asi ...

s, which for its size and length of service became the most decorated unit in U.S. military history. The film, produced and directed by

Lane Nishikawa Lane Nishikawa is a Japanese American actor, filmmaker, playwright and performance artist who was born in Wahiawa, Hawaii and is ''Sansei'' (third generation Japanese American).Kim, Esther. (2006). His work often deals with Asian American histo ...

is a fictionalized account of the rescue of the Lost Battalion.

Plot

In 1953, Jimmy Takata (Nishikawa) suffers from "battle fatigue" (

posttraumatic stress disorder Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental and behavioral disorder that can develop because of exposure to a traumatic event, such as sexual assault, warfare, traffic collisions, child abuse, domestic violence, or other threats on ...

), to the great concern of his wife, Mary (Tomita). Raised in

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...

, Takata and some of his friends enlisted in the 100th Battalion, serving in the

European Theater of Operations The European Theater of Operations, United States Army (ETOUSA) was a Theater of Operations responsible for directing United States Army operations throughout the European theatre of World War II, from 1942 to 1945. It commanded Army Ground For ...

. In a series of flashbacks, he remembers the war and events in his life surrounding it. Following a head injury, he begins to have visions, and believes that he is seeing memories of other men, including his friend Freddy Watada (Watanabe) as he courted Mary (who would later be Jimmy's wife) before entering the Army. Freddy receives a "million-dollar wound" (one which is serious enough to require evacuation to the United States, but not permanently disabling), and he shows Takata an engagement ring, purchased before being sent to Europe, which he intends to give Mary upon his return. Takata's concern about the visions is dismissed as disorientation caused by the head wound by "Doc" Naganuma, the unit medic, a

Medical Doctor A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through th ...

who had likewise joined to help his friends. Takata also has a vision of his father, a

Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

priest in Federal custody, and who tells him "You must accept your fate, here"—pointing to his head -- "the rest of you will follow, here," pointing to Takata's heart. Takata later learns that his father has died, 49 days earlier. Buddhists believe that a spirit will enter Heaven or be reborn 49 days after death. When his unit is ordered to break through German lines and rescue the 1st Battalion, 141st Infantry Regiment, Takata is ordered by the doctor to stay in the rear area, due to his head wound. However, as the casualties mount, he defies orders and attempts to find a way through to the trapped men. He is joined by several of his men (including Freddy), who are also unwilling to wait in the rear as their friends face the danger. Asked by a newly transferred soldier if he's ever afraid, Takata confides that his fear is of losing more men. Joining the rest of the Nisei, Takata and his men fight the Germans, as one-by-one Takata watches his men—nearly all of his friends—being killed in battle. Freddy throws his body on a grenade which had been thrown at Takata, and the men look into each other's eyes as it explodes. The battle won, Takata accepts the thanks of the lieutenant commanding the rescued unit, and notes that 211 of the 275 had been saved, at a cost of over 800 casualties. His thoughts return to 1953, where Mary's love and tears finally break through, and he is able to shed his own tears. A vision comes of his lost men and father, standing in the field hospital, and his father repeats his earlier encouraging statement. Now Takata's vision comes of meeting with Mary after the war, and meeting Mary and Freddy's young daughter, Joanie. Joanie touches the scar on his temple, and as she smiles and looks into his eyes, he is reminded of a refugee girl that he had rescued in the battle which had resulted in the head wound. Takata gives Mary the engagement ring, and explains that, since Freddy had given his life to save Takata's, the least he could do is to bring it home for her. He comforts her as she cries. As that vision fades, we see Jimmy placing the keepsakes from each of his friends in a suitcase and closing it. Mary, sitting behind the wheel of a car, looks up and asks (hoping beyond hope) if he is okay. He looks at her, is able to smile, and says that he is.

Cast

* Jennifer Aquino as Grace Nakajo *

Mark Dacascos Mark Alan Dacascos (born February 26, 1964) is an American actor, martial artist and television personality. He won numerous karate and kung fu championships between the ages of 7 and 18. He is known for his roles as Wo Fat in ''Hawaii Five-0'' ...

as Steve Senzaki *

Jeff Fahey Jeffrey David Fahey (, born November 29, 1952) is an American film and television actor. He has portrayed Captain Frank Lapidus on the ABC series ''Lost'' and the title role of Deputy Marshal Winston MacBride on ''The Marshal''. Early life and ...

as Lt. William Terry *

Gina Hiraizumi Gina or GINA or ''variation'' may refer to: Gina Gina may refer to: * Gina (given name), multiple individuals * Gina (Canaan), a town in ancient Canaan * Arihant (Jainism), also called gina, a term for a human who has conquered his or her inner p ...

as Eleanor Takase *

Jason Scott Lee Jason Scott Lee (; born November 19, 1966) is an American actor and martial artist. He played Mowgli in Disney's 1994 live-action adaptation of ''The Jungle Book'' and Bruce Lee in the 1993 martial arts film '' Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story''. He ...

as Glenn Takase * Emily Liu as Nancy Loo * Noriyuki (Pat) Morita as Jimmy Takata's father *

Ken Narasaki Ken Narasaki (born April 4, 1958) is an American playwright and actor. He is the former Literary Manager at East West Players theatre company in Los Angeles. He is the twin brother of civil rights leader Karen Narasaki. Actor Narasaki has appear ...

as Richard "Doc" Naganuma *

as Jimmy Takata *

Yuji Okumoto is an American actor of Japanese descent. He is best known for his role as Chozen Toguchi in ''The Karate Kid'' franchise. He has also appeared in such films as ''Real Genius'' (1985), '' True Believer'' (1989), ''Contact'' (1997), ''The Truman ...

as Yukio Nakajo *

Tamlyn Tomita Tamlyn Naomi Tomita (born January 27, 1966) is a Japanese-American actress and singer. She made her screen debut as Kumiko in ''The Karate Kid Part II'' (1986) and reprised the character for the streaming series ''Cobra Kai'' (2021). She is also ...

as Mary Takata *

Greg Watanabe Greg Watanabe (born November 8, 1967) is an American actor known for his role in ''Watch Over Me''. He also appears in the independent films, Philip Kan Gotanda's ''Life Tastes Good'', '' Only the Brave'' and ''Americanese''. He is a founding membe ...

- Freddy Watada *

Garret T. Sato Garret T. Sato (November 7, 1964 – March 25, 2020) was an American actor who was born and raised in Oahu, Hawaii. He attended Aiea High School and Leeward Community College where he took up acting. He was ''Yonsei'' (fourth generation Japanese ...

- Richard Imamura *

Guy Ecker Guy Frederick Ecker (born February 9, 1959) is an American actor. Ecker became a household name in Latin America for his portrayal of Sebastián Vallejo in the Colombian telenovela '' Café, con aroma de mujer''. A second Colombian production, ' ...

as Sgt. Robert King * Brian Connolly - Connery the Factory Boss

External links

* * * {{Rotten Tomatoes, 1219104_only_the_brave
''Only the Brave''
film/DVD review by Erik Rupp 2006 films Films set in the 1940s Films about the internment of Japanese Americans American war drama films World War II films based on actual events Films about post-traumatic stress disorder 2000s English-language films 2000s American films

Plot

Cast

See also

External links