A One Mann’s Movies review of “Black Box Diaries” (2024).
I was booked to watch this film at last year’s London Film Festival but I was then unable to attend. I regretted that when this was shortlisted for the Documentary Feature Oscar! But I have now seen it and it is an impressive piece of work, filmed over many years of legal struggle.
Bob the Movie Man Rating:
“Black Box Diaries” Plot Summary:
Shiori Itô is an ambitious journalist who was being interviewed for a job by a famous TV Journalist in 2015. She wakes up to find herself being raped by the older man in his Sheraton hotel room. It’s a culture with sexual assault laws that go back 110 years. The legal age of consent is 13…. not that that matters when sex without consent is not legally considered to be rape. Against this backdrop, Itó faces an 8-year uphill struggle to try to get justice whilst simultaneously trying to juggle her own emotional trauma.
Certification:
UK: 15; US: R. (From the BBFC web site: “Sexual violence references, suicide references”. )
Talent:
Starring: Shiori Itô.
Directed by: Shiori Itô.
Written by: Shiori Itô.
Running Time: 1h 42m.
“Black Box Diaries” Summary:
Positives:
- A powerful story of one woman’s fight against the patriarchy in a world before “Me-Too” became a thing.
- A case smelling of an old-boys club reaching into the highest levels of Japanese politics.
Negatives:
- The method of gathering the material for the film is questionable.
Review of “Black Box Diaries”:
An impressive story.
You can only be impressed by Shiori Itô’s guts and determination in publically coming out and taking on the system. Naive as she may have been with her initial press conference, the vitriol and abuse she receives for speaking out – and from women as well as men – is just obscene. The film vividly portrays her commitment to her journalistic craft but also how she uses that as a sort of emotional shield. She crumbles into an emotional wreck when she has to drop the professional facade and face the realities of the law case as just ‘her’ – to the public, “that girl who was raped”.
Some extraordinary scenes.
The documentary has some standout scenes. One has her recording a video to camera stating that if she is found dead in an apparent suicide then the authorities should immediately suspect foul-play since that is something she would never, ever, contemplate doing. Another is a dramatic scene when the emotional intensity of the court case washes over her and she records an emotional video message to her parents.
But then again, the methods are a bit underhand.
The film has come under some flak over (ironically) a lack of consent over recordings made by Shiori Itô. This even includes complaints from her own legal team and key witnesses in her case. Itó secretely recorded meetings and phone calls which are used in the film. This film was made as a mechanism for effecting change in Japan and to encourage more women to prosecute cases of sexual assault. But, perversely, there is a fear that this form of secret recording could discourage future witnesses from coming forwards and so damage the “Me-Too” movement in Japan.
Triggers
As for Shiori Itô, there are obvious triggers in here for victims of rape, and particularly victims of date rape drugs. There is also a suicide theme that might be triggering for some viewers.
Summary Thoughts on “Black Box Diaries”
This was a solid and moving documentary that I found gripping from beginning to end. I suspect though that the smoke around the material gathering will damage its chances at the Oscars.
At the time of writing, the film is available to view (for UK readers) on the BBC iPlayer as a part of the BBC’s ‘Storyville’ series. That is available here for UK TV Licence holders. Please check the Justwatch widget below for other channels in your geography.
Where to Watch it (Powered by Justwatch)
Trailer for “Black Box Diaries”:
The trailer is here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zeHfN61S6Gg.
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