At the desperate behooving of Patti and Finlay, Eric goes to Japan to confront his old nemesis – and possibly get revenge and bloody closure. At one point, Finlay refers to them as "an army of ghosts." In a twist of fate, however, Eric discovers his main torturer (played as an adult by Hiroyuki Sanada of "The Wolverine") is still alive, running a museum at the old work camp. The events have left Eric permanently bruised and emotionally crippled, as well as the rest of his troop. She eventually finds out the truth about Eric’s WWII service as a young British officer (played by Jeremy Irvine of "War Horse"), a tour in the Pacific theater that involved being taken as a prisoner of war by the Japanese, being forced to work on the Thai-Burma Railway – essentially a suicide mission – and eventually stomaching relentless torture after being caught with a makeshift radio. Even as his behavior gets worse though, he refuses to discuss his past traumas with an increasingly disturbed Patti. Once merely a quirk, his obsession with trains is now obviously a coping mechanism for his memories of WWII, memories that often strike Eric as sweaty, terror-inducing hallucinations. He stops paying attention to his new wife, becomes controlling about their home and violently lashes out against debt collectors. Soon after the honeymoon, however, Eric’s once merely frazzled behavior becomes dangerously, unnervingly erratic. The two fall in love – much to the surprise of Eric’s fellow veteran lunch mates, namely his best friend Finlay (Stellan Skarsgard) – and eventually get married. On a cross-country train trip, however, he meets Patti (Nicole Kidman), a former WWII nurse herself who becomes charmed by his slightly frazzled demeanor and almost cute encyclopedia-like obsession with railways. The audience first meets Eric as a middle-aged, quiet and lonely WWII veteran, played by the predictably solid Colin Firth. Luckily, "The Railway Man" does it justice, even through a coat of the Weinstein Company’s patented prestige lacquer.
It’s an impossibly powerful story, as well as an almost impossible one to waste on screen. It’s already a tale of unfathomable survival, bravery, strength and, in the end, humanity that could put most of this summer’s superheroes to shame.
The incredible true story of the late Eric Lomax, however, is worthy of celebration without requiring much Hollywood embellishment. Most audiences are savvy – or cynical – enough to know most "inspired by real events" movies are a generous 50:50 blend of reality and Hollywood’s imposed formulas.
Attaching the phrase "based on a true story" to a film’s marketing has lost much of its meaning over the years.
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