IMDb RATING
6.0/10
2.3K
YOUR RATING
A dedicated American reporter in 1930s Japan is determined to expose that government's plan for world domination.A dedicated American reporter in 1930s Japan is determined to expose that government's plan for world domination.A dedicated American reporter in 1930s Japan is determined to expose that government's plan for world domination.
- Won 1 Oscar
- 1 win total
Philip Ahn
- Secret Police Capt. Yomamoto
- (uncredited)
Hugh Beaumont
- Johnny Clarke
- (uncredited)
Edward Biby
- Bar Patron
- (uncredited)
Oie Chan
- Chinese Servant
- (uncredited)
Oy Chan
- Chinese Servant
- (uncredited)
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaAccording to the DVD sleeve notes, prior to production James Cagney trained intensively in the martial art of judo in preparation for his role. He trained under Ken Kuniyuki, who was a 5th Degree Judo Master. Cagney insisted that he perform his own stunts. He said in his memoirs, "I grew so fond of judo I used it to keep in shape until a back injury I picked up doing something else put me on the sidelines." Moreover, another instructor for Cagney was former LAPD policeman John Halloran, who plays the role of Capt. Oshima and can be seen in the closing fight sequence. Apparently Halloran quit the LAPD after FBI agents investigated him because he was an expert in judo.
- GoofsIn the opening credits, the copyright is "MCMLXV." which is 1965. The film was produced in 1945, so the copyright should read "MCMXLV."
- Quotes
Iris Hilliard: Japanese women aren't allowed to think. It's against the law.
- Alternate versionsAlso available in a computer-colorized version.
- ConnectionsEdited into Your Afternoon Movie: Blood on the Sun (2023)
Featured review
Anti-Japanese propaganda that is an average Cagney thriller
In Japan journalist Nick Condon runs an American paper. He is forever at odds with the state police for reporting news they don't want to be told. When one of his colleagues stumbles into a story before being killed while trying to leave the country Nick tries to track down the killers and the documents that his friend died to protect. He begins to uncover a plot to attack the US.
This bit of propaganda is a standard Cagney thriller at heart. The setting is basically to show Japanese in a bad light and to show how America needs to make the right (but difficult) decisions in order to overcome the `yellow threat'. The `true story' does this but it is also a reasonable thriller. The story moves with a reasonable pace but it does drag at times when it stoops to make the bad guys look morally wrong and make their culture look brutal and un-American.
The story makes space for a love story between Nick and the supposedly mixed-race Iris. This doesn't work at all and it feels like it was crammed into the original script. Add to this the fact that the film tries to stick in as many scenes as it can where the Japanese are made to look in a bad light. Cagney is good as always and adds martial arts to his tough guy act (so what if it clearly isn't him at times). Sidney is wasted in a role that goes from spy to blithering woman in less than 30 minutes. The rest of the cast are either good Americans or bad Japanese.
Overall this is a average Cagney thriller. The romance sub-plot doesn't work and the anti-Japanese theme is a little unpleasant. Has it's moments but the weaknesses take quite a bit away from it.
This bit of propaganda is a standard Cagney thriller at heart. The setting is basically to show Japanese in a bad light and to show how America needs to make the right (but difficult) decisions in order to overcome the `yellow threat'. The `true story' does this but it is also a reasonable thriller. The story moves with a reasonable pace but it does drag at times when it stoops to make the bad guys look morally wrong and make their culture look brutal and un-American.
The story makes space for a love story between Nick and the supposedly mixed-race Iris. This doesn't work at all and it feels like it was crammed into the original script. Add to this the fact that the film tries to stick in as many scenes as it can where the Japanese are made to look in a bad light. Cagney is good as always and adds martial arts to his tough guy act (so what if it clearly isn't him at times). Sidney is wasted in a role that goes from spy to blithering woman in less than 30 minutes. The rest of the cast are either good Americans or bad Japanese.
Overall this is a average Cagney thriller. The romance sub-plot doesn't work and the anti-Japanese theme is a little unpleasant. Has it's moments but the weaknesses take quite a bit away from it.
Helpful•810
- bob the moo
- Nov 16, 2002
- Permalink
- How long is Blood on the Sun?Powered by Alexa
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Languages
- Also known as
- Spionage in Fernost
- Filming locations
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
- Runtime1 hour 34 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.37 : 1
Contribute to this page
Suggest an edit or add missing content
![James Cagney, John Emery, and Sylvia Sidney in Blood on the Sun (1945)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BODg5OTQ2YjAtODRlZC00YTRmLTk0M2EtZmQyMmRjMjY0OTRlXkEyXkFqcGc@._V1_QL75_UX90_CR0,3,90,133_.jpg)