The documentary Wings of Defeat challenges conventional views of the Japanese kamikaze pilots in World War II by interviewing kamikaze pilots who survived the attacks. These men defy stereotypes about the kamikaze; they were not ruthless in their mission to destroy themselves if it meant ending American lives. Instead, the pilots were boys forced into the Tokkotai order out of desperation to save their homeland.
Before the film, I thought the kamikaze were extremists who acted independently from any military command. I was shocked to learn that the Japanese government formed the kamikaze order, and eventually ordered all pilots and then all citizens to become kamikaze. I empathize more with the kamikaze pilots now, who had no choice but to