SETTING: 1921 - 1937

LOCATION: Tokyo

SYNOPSIS:
In the summer of 1921, ASAHI HYOGO, under the influence of a book entitled "Draft for Rebuilding of Japan" written by a revolutionst KITA IKKI, stabs to death YASUDA ZENJIRO, the head of the Yasuda financial group. One soldier aspiring to selt-sacrifice for the sake of his country also becomes strongly influenced by the same book and comes to KITA to seek leadership and guidance. KITA who has a negative attitude toward individual terrorist efforts, tells the soldier to bide his time and "wait until a total uprising to take place on May 15" and instructs him to blow up a power transforming station on that day. The soldier fails in his efforts to blow up the station, and comes to apologize deeply to KITA. KITA begins to feel a certain degree of fear from the far-reaching influences of his ideologies. Times move along and the goverment by political parties becomes corrupt. In order to correct the many contradictory phenomena in politics, an extremist group of young army officers aspire to put into action the "Rebuilding Draft" and achieve a coup d'etat in the name of the Emperor's Army. On February 26, 1936, troops numbering 1, 400 led by the young officers arise and conduct assaults on leading political figures, and martial law is declared. The coup ends in failure however, and KITA IKKI is convicted of being the ideological leader instigating the uprising and together with his scolyte, NISHIDA ZEI, is executed.

NOTES:
The "Draft for Rebuilding of Japan" written in 1919 by KITA IKKI (1883-1937) became the guiding principle behind Japanese fascism and influenced the thinking of many youths in Japan. During the period from 1920 to early 1930's of depression, many terrorist acts were comnitted. On May 15, 1932, these acts culminated in the assasination of the Prime Minister INUKAI TSUYOSHI. Further, on February 26, 1936, a group of middle-rank Army officers conducted assaults on political leaders in the cause of "extermination of traitorous flunkeys close to the Emperor", resulting in the assasinations of Interior Minister SAITO MAKOTO, Finance Minister TAKAHASHI KOREKIYO, Army Training and Education Superintendent WATANABE JOTARO. Martial law was declared the following day and the riotous groups were quelled on February 29. The avant-garde director, YOSHIDA YOSHISHIGE handles the chain of events in which the book "Draft for Rebuilding of Japan", primarily intended to overcome the economic poverty of Japan gradually turns into a detonating element for a military coup d'etat. Rather than being a faithful reproduction of this incident perse, it is a form of "spiritual esthetic of extreme right ideology" in a swiftly changing times.