Film salvages wartime story of tragic sinking, heroic rescues

Long-awaited premiere

In August last year, a special screening of the nearly finished documentary took place in the British Film Institute's Southbank theater, in London, following delays caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The screening was for 400 relatives and friends of the Lisbon Maru POWs.

"When we filmed Morley, we promised that we would give him this documentary as his 100th birthday gift, but unfortunately we could not make it," Fang said.

After the two-hour screening, applause erupted and many in the audience shed tears. Banham, the historian, said he could hear people sobbing from the moment the film started.

"The true story of war is grief," Banham said. "It's the impact on families. Many documentaries about war talk about the glamour of war, the aircraft, the tanks, the colorful explosions. But, the real long-term impact of war is on the families of those who were killed and those who survived."

In June, the long-awaited documentary finally made its global debut at the 26th Shanghai International Film Festival. Of 450 films, The Sinking of the Lisbon Maru was chosen to open the festival.

Morley's daughter Denise Wynne tearfully said after watching the film that "history should not be forgotten or distorted".

Some family members of the fishermen were also present at the premiere, including Chen Xuelian, whose father steered a sampan to rescue several British POWs.

"I'm so excited to see my father's image on the screen today. I'm so proud of his heroic acts," said Chen.

Zhang Kun and Wang Xin in Shanghai contributed to the story.