The Battle of the Java Sea

The Java Sea battle on 27 February 1942 is one of the most memorable episodes in Dutch maritime history. The name of rear admiral Karel Doorman is inextricably bound up with this event. His winged expression "I charge, follow me!" still turns up regularly in Dutch parlance. The Java Sea battle signified more than a disastrous confrontation between the Japanese and allied naval forces. It was a confrontation between East and West, between the old and the new age. A confrontation which had an enormous influence on the political and social relations in the world. For his film, Niek Koppen spoke with survivors of the battle, both from the Japanese and the allied side. Their emotionally charged accounts are juxtaposed and give a penetrating image of an event that had far-reaching consequences for all people involved. The film also makes clear that truth has many faces. Every story casts another, personal light on this chapter in world history. Koppen belongs to the post-war generation, but he is also personally involved in his subject. His mother's first husband fell in the battle and his uncle Henk Koppen was one of the survivors.