Black Box Diaries: A Deeply Personal Battle Against the Patriarchal Systems of Japan

Doc Weekly is covering this year’s BFI London Film Festival with reviews and interviews from some of our favourite documentaries. Black Box Diaries by Shiori Itō will be screening in London on the 12th and 13th of October before a UK cinema release from the 25th of October.

It always irks me to be called 'brave' as a victim. Despite best intentions, this label can reinforce the norm of silent fear among survivors of sexual abuse. Shiori Itō’s Black Box Diaries, which sees her chase down cars, defy family members, and confront the fear of death in her pursuit of justice, is a stark reminder of just how much courage is still needed to speak out against perpetrators.

In 2015, as a budding young journalist, Itō went to network with well-known TV reporter Noriyuki Yamaguchi, but instead he drugged and raped in his hotel room. In her directorial debut she self-documents her ensuing legal and emotional battle. Black Box Diaries premiered at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year to critical acclaim and will be screened This weekend at the BFI London Film Festival ahead of its UK release on October 25th.

Through her first-hand experience, Shiori Itō exposes the complex and overwhelming patriarchal structures rooted in contemporary Japanese society which continue to protect men like Noriyuki. At the time of her attack, rape was defined as only legally taking place if the victim could prove that violence had also occurred. Whilst Itō's work has since overturned this century old law and rape is now seen as any contact without consent, Noriyuki remains a prominent figure in journalism and has never faced criminal allegations. 

An intricate and perfectly woven tale, Black Box Diaries remains unflinchingly personal despite the complex contextual elements at play. Editor Ema Yamazaki stitches self-shot vlogs with newsreels, undercover interviews, testimonials and fly on the wall footage shot by camerawoman and friend Hannah Aqvillin. It’s more emotional than Itō’s memoir, published under the same name in 2017. One minute we’re crying with her, the next we’re laughing. These lighter moments make the heavier ones punch even harder.

One of the most touching scenes follows a Women in media conference. There has been a dichotomy in Itō's public reception since speaking out. Whilst many see her as the heroic face of Japan’s #metoo movement, others have victim blamed and vilified her. We see this abuse typed out in vicious tweets and hurled at her in the street. But during this forum Itō describes the support of her peers like warm blankets, covering up the naked vulnerability she’s felt during her trial.

In contrast, her experience with men in the film shines an infuriating light on the misogyny she faces. Taxi drivers and doormen watch on as Noriyuki carries her the night he attacked her, male policemen discourage her from reporting the incident, and even the seemingly more cooperative investigator A ends up drunkenly coming onto her. When she finally secures victory of sorts in the form of a civil suit in 2019 and she plays Gloria Gaynor’s ‘I will survive’ on her phone, I almost sang in shared relief. 

In true journalist fashion, what ultimately pushes her over the obstacles in her way is an undying commitment to revealing the truth and her duty to tell it. Is Shiori Itō brave? Undeniably. But it’s her selfless dedication to women’s truth that I thank her for.

Black Box Diaries will be out in UK cinemas from the 25th of October.