USS Indianapolis: Men of Courage Page #8

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CHARLIE:
Let's get through this weather

is quickly as possible.

Cease zigzagging

until the fog clears.

Full speed ahead.

Tell us about

the sequence of events

the night you were struck.

We'd been hit.

The question was how bad.

The Indianapolis

is a strong ship.

She's built

like a floating tank.

We had survived

multiple attacks before

so we had

to assess the damage.

- General quarters!

- We had no electrical.

Did you get the SOS out?

Pass the word!

Abandon ship.

So you called abandon ship

about six to eight minutes

- after you were struck.

- Abandon ship!

How did you personally

abandon ship?

Go, go!

Can anyone hear me?

Paul?

Paul.

CHARLIE:
It was the last

I saw of my men that night

and the last I saw

of our ship.

Nothing further,

Your Honor.

We wish to call to the stand

the only submarine commander

who is relevant to this case

because he was there.

The United States government

calls Captain Hashimoto

of the Imperial Japanese Navy.

(AUDIENCE MURMURING)

JUDGE:
Order in the court.

Order in the court.

PROSECUTOR:
Captain Hashimoto,

you understand

that you are under oath

to tell the truth,

the whole truth,

and nothing but the truth.

But you're not Christian,

are you?

Shintoist.

We believe that the soul

exists after death,

and, yes,

I understand the difference

between truth

and falsehood.

Very well.

Tell us about your actions

on the night in question.

(SPEAKING JAPANESE)

Did you fire your kaitens?

So the USS Indianapolis

was sunk

using conventional torpedoes.

Yes.

In your opinion,

if the ship had been zigzagging,

would it have made

a difference?

No.

We were too close.

I fired six torpedoes.

He had no chance to escape.

No further questions,

Your Honor.

(CHANTING) McVay must pay!

McVay must pay!

MAN:
Call to order.

Please rise.

On the first count,

failure to give the order

to abandon ship

in a timely manner,

we find the defendant,

Captain Charles Butler

McVay III, not guilty.

(GAVEL BANGS,

AUDIENCE WHISPERING)

(AUDIENCE MURMURS)

What does that mean?

What happened?

They only announce

the not-guilty verdicts.

He's been found guilty

of hazarding the ship

by failing to zigzag.

They court-martial

our captain

and didn't mention

all of our dead?

They should be building

him a monument.

Charlie,

I want you to know,

I'd rather this

played out differently.

Hundreds of ships

were sunk during the war,

and yours is the only

court-martial?

It stinks.

Thank you.

MAN:
Whoa, whoa, whoa.

Who's that guy?

Who is that guy?

I need a few minutes alone.

Captain...

Captain, how do you feel

about this being the worst

naval disaster in history?

- Captain...

- Is it true you were denied your choice of an attorney?

(SPEAKING JAPANESE)

This would never happen

in Japan.

If the roles were reversed,

you would not be called in

to testify on anyone's behalf.

Was there anything

I could have done?

You were exposed.

We were there.

As a commander

in the Imperial Japanese Navy,

it was my duty to kill you.

But as a man...

I have regrets.

I had a good idea

of what we were carrying.

I, too, did my duty.

But as a man...

I find no...

honor in it.

I often wonder

how things would be

if I had stopped you before

you completed your mission.

We have learned to

forgive each other as former adversaries.

Perhaps one day...

we can forgive ourselves

as men.

MAN:

They say we won the war.

In my opinion,

we'll really win

when there is no more war.

MAN:
And just like there were

different groups

of survivors in the water...

MAN #2:
There are different

groups on land today.

MAN #3:
Every year,

we survivors gather together

to honor our fallen brothers.

Even though they're gone,

they'll be with us forever.

MAN #4:
Our new mission

is to try to make sure

that even future generations

never forget

the price that

we all paid for freedom.

CHARLIE:

Time marched on,

and I eventually lost

my dear Louise.

And the memories...

of all the boys

we lost at sea...

never faded.

- And the phone...

- (TELEPHONE RINGING)

never stopped ringing.

(RINGING CONTINUES)

(RINGING)

(GUNSHOT)

The first day,

we must have had 120,

150 sharks around us

all day long.

It's a horrifying experience,

you know,

being in the water,

don't know if they're

coming to get you.

If you hit those sharks

in the eyeball,

it really hurt them,

and they left you alone,

and you could see down

in the water maybe 50 feet,

and they'd go down there

and just thrash

back and forth in pain.

Whenever they said there were

sharks in the area,

I always pulled my legs up

and froze.

And I was petrified.

I saw so many sharks

eating men

that I never will

like them.

You know,

I think they're horrible.

(UPBEAT JAZZ MUSIC PLAYS)

(SOMBER MUSIC PLAYS)

(WOMAN VOCALIZING)

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