Movies Like Japan's Longest Day (1967)

Japan's Longest Day is a 1967 drama, history, war film from Kihachi Okamoto with a MovieMagicScore of 7.2/10. Here are 20 similar films, ranked by real viewer ratings — starting with Empire of the Sun and The Burmese Harp.

Drama History War

Empire of the Sun

1987

Jamie Graham, a privileged English boy, is living in Shanghai when the Japanese invade and force all foreigners into prison camps. Jamie is captured with an American sailor, who looks out for him while they are in the camp together. Even though he is separated from his parents and in a hostile environment, Jamie maintains his dignity and youthful spirit, providing a beacon of hope for the others held captive with him.

7.5

MagicScore

The Burmese Harp

1956

In Burma during the closing days of WWII, a Japanese soldier separated from his unit disguises himself as a Buddhist monk to escape imprisonment as a POW.

7.9

MagicScore

Hell in the Pacific

1968

During World War II, a shot-down American pilot and a marooned Japanese navy captain find themselves stranded on the same small uninhabited island in the Pacific Ocean.

6.9

MagicScore

The Human Condition II: Road to Eternity

1959

Kaji is sent to the Japanese army labeled Red and is mistreated by the vets. Along his assignment, Kaji witnesses cruelties in the army and revolts against the abusive treatment against the recruit Obara. He also sees his friend Shinjô Ittôhei defecting to the Russian border, and he ends in the front to fight a lost battle against the Russian tanks division.

8.2

MagicScore

Tora! Tora! Tora!

1970

In the summer of 1941, the United States and Japan seem on the brink of war after constant embargos and failed diplomacy come to no end. "Tora! Tora! Tora!", named after the code words used by the lead Japanese pilot to indicate they had surprised the Americans, covers the days leading up to the attack on Pearl Harbor, which plunged America into the Second World War.

7.1

MagicScore

The Sun

2005

A re-imagination of Japanese Emperor Hirohito’s final days in power as WWII draws to a close.

6.7

MagicScore

The Thin Red Line

1998

The story of a group of men, an Army Rifle company called C-for-Charlie, who change, suffer, and ultimately make essential discoveries about themselves during the fierce World War II battle of Guadalcanal. It follows their journey, from the surprise of an unopposed landing, through the bloody and exhausting battles that follow, to the ultimate departure of those who survived.

7.4

MagicScore

Fires on the Plain

1959

In the closing days of WWII, a Japanese soldier afflicted with tuberculosis is abandoned by his company and left to wander the Philippine island of Leyte.

7.6

MagicScore

Letters from Iwo Jima

2006

The story of the battle of Iwo Jima between the United States and Imperial Japan during World War II, as told from the perspective of the Japanese who fought it.

7.5

MagicScore

#10

Heaven Knows, Mr. Allison

1957

A Roman Catholic nun and a hard-bitten US Marine are stranded together on a Japanese-occupied island in the South Pacific during World War II. Under constant threat of discovery by a ruthless enemy, they hide in a cave and forage for food together. Their forced companionship and the struggle for survival forge a powerful emotional bond between them.

6.9

MagicScore

#11

Emperor

2012

As the Japanese surrender at the end of WWII, Gen. Fellers is tasked with deciding if Emperor Hirohito will be hanged as a war criminal. Influencing his ruling is his quest to find Aya, an exchange student he met years earlier in the U.S.

6.1

MagicScore

#12

The Bridge on the River Kwai

1957

The classic story of English POWs in Burma forced to build a bridge to aid the war effort of their Japanese captors. British and American intelligence officers conspire to blow up the structure, but Col. Nicholson, the commander who supervised the bridge's construction, has acquired a sense of pride in his creation and tries to foil their plans.

7.8

MagicScore

#13

Windtalkers

2002

Joe Enders is a gung-ho Marine assigned to protect a "windtalker" - one of several Navajo Indians who were used to relay messages during World War II because their spoken language was indecipherable to Japanese code breakers.

6.3

MagicScore

#14

Unbroken

2014

A chronicle of the life of Louis Zamperini, an Olympic runner who was taken prisoner by Japanese forces during World War II.

7.4

MagicScore

#15

The Human Condition III: A Soldier's Prayer

1961

After the Japanese defeat to the Russians, Kaji leads the last remaining men through Manchuria. Intent on returning to his dear wife and his old life, Kaji faces great odds in a variety of different harrowing circumstances as he and his fellow men sneak behind enemy lines.

8.4

MagicScore

#16

The Wind Rises

2013

A lifelong love of flight inspires Japanese aviation engineer Jiro Horikoshi, whose storied career includes the creation of the A-6M World War II fighter plane.

7.8

MagicScore

#17

Flags of Our Fathers

2006

There were five Marines and one Navy Corpsman photographed raising the U.S. flag on Mt. Suribachi by Joe Rosenthal on February 23, 1945. This is the story of three of the six surviving servicemen - John 'Doc' Bradley, Pvt. Rene Gagnon and Pvt. Ira Hayes - who fought in the battle to take Iwo Jima from the Japanese.

6.9

MagicScore

#18

Men Behind the Sun

1988

The film is a graphic depiction of the war atrocities committed by the Japanese at Unit 731, the secret biological weapons experimentation unit of the Imperial Japanese Army during World War II. The film details the various cruel medical experiments Unit 731 inflicted upon the Chinese and Soviet prisoners at the tail-end of the war.

6.2

MagicScore

#19

Kokoda

2006

A bitter battle is fought between Australian and Japanese soldiers along the Kokoda trail in New Guinea during World War II.

6.2

MagicScore

#20

Merrill's Marauders

1962

Brigadier General Frank D. Merrill leads the 3,000 American volunteers of his 5307th Composite Unit (Provisional), aka "Merrill's Marauders", behind Japanese lines across Burma to Myitkyina, pushing beyond their limits and fighting pitched battles at every strong-point.

6.1

MagicScore

Frequently asked

What are the best movies like Japan's Longest Day?

The top films similar to Japan's Longest Day by MovieMagicScore are Empire of the Sun (7.5), The Burmese Harp (7.9), Hell in the Pacific (6.9). Each shares drama/history/war themes and is ranked by real viewer ratings, not critics or studios.

Is Japan's Longest Day worth watching?

Japan's Longest Day holds a MovieMagicScore of 7.2/10 from 29 viewer ratings, putting it among the better-reviewed titles in its genre.

What kind of movie is Japan's Longest Day?

Japan's Longest Day (1967) is a drama, history, war film directed by Kihachi Okamoto, starring Seiji Miyaguchi, Rokkō Toura, Chishū Ryū.

Where can I find more recommendations like Japan's Longest Day?

Browse the full ranked list above, or explore more drama recommendations on MovieMagicScore, where every list is ordered by genuine viewer ratings.

Keep exploring

Movies like Empire of the Sun Movies like The Burmese Harp Movies like Hell in the Pacific Movies like The Human Condition II: Road to Eternity Movies like Tora! Tora! Tora!Movies like The Sun

About movies like Japan's Longest Day

This ranked list pairs Japan's Longest Day (1967), a drama and history and war film from Kihachi Okamoto, with similar titles by genre, theme and cast overlap (fans of Seiji Miyaguchi take note). Unlike critic-driven sites, every position here is ordered by MovieMagicScore — a rating built only from real viewers, with no studio marketing or paid placement. Scores update as more people rate, so the list stays current.

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