Diana Tuova
There are films that glorify wars and there are films that take an obvious anti-war stance (from All Quiet on the Western Front and Grand Illusion to Fires on the Plain and Johnny Got His Gun). However, films about pacificists in particular tend to focus on some incredible stories associated with them. Stories about pacifists, people who oppose violence as a solution to problems, have been stirring people’s imagination perhaps ever since Sergeant York (1941). Though there are a number of fictional pacifists in films, directors never seemed to be short of material about real-life pacifists to make their movies. Below are seven films about pacifists that are worth your time.
Gandhi (1982)
This is probably the first movie that comes to mind when you think about films about pacifists. Gandhi was an Indian lawyer and political ethicist who led a non-violent resistance campaign for India’s independence from the British. The film, which was directed by Richard Attenborough and won eight Academy Awards, tells this story of Gandhi and his actions, starting from his first involvement in non-violent resistance campaigns to achieve justice for the Indian people and finishing with his assassination in 1948. Billy Williams and Ronnie Taylor’s cinematography is gorgeous, and Ben Kingsley’s role as Gandhi must be one of the absolute jewels in the history of cinema and leading roles. Moreover, surely, the film contains some of the most powerful speeches in cinema ever. “In this cause I, too, am prepared to die. But, my friend, there is no cause for which I am prepared to kill” (Mahatma Gandhi in Gandhi).
The Human Condition I: No Greater Love (1959)
No Greater Love is the first film in the trilogy of films about the human condition from Masaki Kobayashi. It focuses on Kaji (Tatsuya Nakadai), a man with a strong sense of morality and integrity, who is appointed a supervisor in a Manchurian prison camp during the World War II. He is accompanied by his supportive wife Michiko (Michiyo Aratama) and, initially, as a true pacifist, Kaji is appalled at the treatment of prisoners in the camp and wants changes. However, he soon finds out that he is no match for the behind-the-scenes machinations made both high above and by some prisoners under his guard. Kaji’s struggle also represents a symbolic struggle of humanity as it is faced with the systems of control and subjugation. This is a profound, endlessly thought-provoking cinematic masterpiece about dehumanisation through war and corrupt systems in place.
Hacksaw Ridge (2016)
Being a conscientious objector is different from being a pacifist, but Desmond Doss’s actions during the World War II were so selfless and showed so much devotion to Biblical commandment “Thou shalt not kill” and being against any commission of violence that they also indicated strong pacifism. In Mel Gibson’s bibliographical film Hacksaw Ridge, based on Terry Benedict’s 2004 documentary (see below) about this case, Desmond Doss (Andrew Garfield) is a kind, religious young man who enlisted to serve the army as a conscientious objector with the conviction that he should not even touch a gun during his service. For this reason, he had a hard time in the army. However, at the Battle of Okinawa, Doss’s heroic actions meant that some seventy-five men were saved as he evacuated them all one by one from the enemy line. The film is full of Doss’s unwavering conviction and emotion, combining a touching love story (between Desmond and his sweetheart Dorothy played by Teresa Palmer) with the brutalities of war. It is an endlessly inspiring, moving film about a real hero whose story the world should never forget.
Friendly Persuasion (1956)
Friendly Persuasion is a delightful film from William Wyler about a Quaker family advocating peace and non-violence in Indiana in 1862 only to be confronted with the approaching Civil War demands and obligations. This is a story about both the testing of one’s beliefs and the exploration of heart-warming family relationships. Gary Cooper is in the role of the patriarch of this family where his older son Joshua (Anthony Perkins) is already of age to serve his country, while his only daughter Mattie (Phyllis Love) has fallen in love with an enlisted soldier. The family’s peaceful, non-violent principles get severely tested. However, the film’s main strength probably lies not in the drama that explores the pacifists’ dilemmas, but in a number of humoristic vignettes scattered throughout the film.
Selma (2014)
“I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word in reality”, that is what Martin Luther King said as he accepted his Nobel Peace Prize in 1964. Martin Luther King, one of the leaders of the Civil Rights Movement, stood for peaceful resolutions to many societal problems. This historical drama by Ava DuVernay details King’s leadership role in the 1965 Selma to Montgomery voting rights marches that also culminated in what became known as “Bloody Sunday” as state troopers and local police clashed with peaceful protestors. Actor David Oyelowo brings to life the character of King in all its complexity, showcasing not just a strong and influential leader, but also a man with his own visions and troubles. The merit of the film is how vividly it manages to present a very complex political situation at the time, with arrests, racial injustices and protesters’ mobilisation going on in the background of key events. Selma is a powerful film that unlikely to ever lose its relevancy or potency.
A Hidden Life (2019)
A Hidden Life tells of Austrian farmer Franz Jägerstätter (August Diehl) who refuses to fight for Germany in the midst of the World War II. What follows is the persecution of this deeply religious man determined to stick to his principles as he puts his faith in God. Terrence Malick made a beautiful film of beautiful intentions. This is a deeply human, spiritual portrayal of a pacifist man at odds with the sentiment of his community. The film has its own peculiar rhyme, Jörg Widmer’s cinematography amazes, and Diehl and Valerie Pachner (in the role of Franz’s wife) give superb performances.
The Conscientious Objector (2004)
The Conscientious Objector is Terry Benedict’s documentary about combat medic and conscientious objector Desmond Doss who was awarded the Medal of Honour for his actions that saved numerous men during the World War II. Through the interviews with Desmond Doss himself (now aged eighty-five), as well as with his past comrades-in-arms, we uncover his early life and all the events that led up to this heroic actions that saved men in the Battle of Okinawa. Although there is little in this simple film about those days in May 1945 when Private Doss was rescuing men, there is plenty here about Doss as a person and a pacifist, his beliefs and what pressure he experienced in the army because of his faith not to inflict violence or bear arms. Apparently, Doss previously refused to have his story told through film, and this only changed when he met Benedict in 2003. We should be so thankful that he did. This is an incredible story about an incredible man.
