Title: Appointment in Tokyo
Year: 1945
Genres: Documentary; War; History
Director: Jack Hively

Cast:

• General Douglas MacArthur (archive footage)
• Admiral Chester W. Nimitz (archive footage)
• General George C. Kenney (archive footage)
• James Craig (Narrator)

Synopsis:

Appointment in Tokyo chronicles the Allied campaign in the Pacific from early 1942 through Japan’s surrender in September 1945. Starting with General MacArthur’s exile from the Philippines, it interweaves frontline combat footage—from the Solomons and Papua New Guinea to Leyte and Manila—with strategic overviews and the emotional rescue of POWs. The film culminates in the signing of the instrument of surrender aboard the USS Missouri, providing a concise yet powerful record of the war’s final months.

Trivia:

• Produced by the Army Pictorial Service and Signal Corps with cooperation from the Army Air Forces and Navy; released by Warner Bros. for the War Activities Committee immediately after Japan’s surrender.
• Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2013, ensuring the survival of its rare battlefield and POW-rescue footage.
• Upon release, NYT critic Bosley Crowther praised its vivid action sequences but found its narrative framing overly focused on MacArthur’s persona.
• The film’s copyright was not renewed, and it now resides in the public domain.