Honor & Sacrifice: The Roy Matsumoto Story

Gr 8 Up—Though this film focuses on the World War II experiences of the filmmaker's father, it also follows his family's fortunes in the United States and their return to Japan. Roy Matsumoto's family emigrated from Southern Japan in the 1890s and found farm work in California. Discriminatory laws barred Japanese immigrants from owning land, so many returned to Japan in the 1920s and 1930s, and Roy's family sent him to be educated in Japan. A few years later, the entire family returned to Hiroshima, where Roy's father opened a photography studio. After Roy finished his studies, he and a younger brother returned to the United States. When war was declared, Roy and his brother were sent to an internment camp in Jerome, AR. Both enlisted in the army, and Roy volunteered to be a translator for Merrill's Marauders, which carried out hazardous missions behind enemy lines in Burma. Roy served with distinction and helped save his unit from attack. After the war, he was sent to Japan, where he met the surviving members of his family. Fortunately, the failure of his father's business in Hiroshima forced them to relocate to the countryside before that city was bombed. Roy's story is an example of how the war tested family bonds. Roy was the eldest of five brothers; three others served with the Japanese military. Their story is supplemented with archival photos and interview excerpts. This work shines a long overdue light on their wartime accomplishments. With its universal themes of divided loyalties, wartime sacrifice, and perseverance, this film is a worthy supplement to history units.—Marilyn Taniguchi, Beverly Hills Public Library, CA