Rain of Ruin

Home > Rain of Ruin

Rain of Ruin

Running Time: 56 minutes
G 10-Adult
Oregon Public Broadcasting

"**** Four stars. A sobering history lesson."
- TV Host Magazine

"Riveting...a gripping program. One of the strengths of Rain of Ruin is its balanced presentation...Viewers are allowed to explore their own feelings and opinions."
- Hollywood Reporter

"Highly recommended. Rain of Ruin is a... dispassionate work. It provides a brisk and clearly-presented historical overview of the baroque international politics and complex tactical maneuverings which lead to the dropping of the bomb on Nagasaki. The film makes extensive and skillful use of archival footage and photographs to tell the story."
- Video Librarian

- Aired nationally on PBS

Narrated by Linda Hunt This powerful video features a comprehensive examination of one of the most important, yet little-understood episodes in modern history - the several months leading up to the atomic bombings of Japan, which both ended World War II and shaped the world's geo-political landscape for the next 50 years.

To compel Japan's unconditional surrender, President Truman threatened a "rain of ruin," culminating in the bombing of Nagasaki on August 9, 1945.

RAIN OF RUIN investigates the key political and military motivations for the atomic bombings, especially the Nagasaki bombing. Did Japan finally surrender because of the atomic bombs or were there other reasons? Was the bomb’s true aim to make an impression on Stalin? And, why did the Soviet Union enter the Pacific War on the very date Nagasaki was bombed?

Top historical scholars present and discuss the principal theories, revealing the bombing to be a more complex historical event than commonly believed. The program draws on previously unpublished and declassified documents from the U.S., Japanese and Soviet archives, as well as remarkable film footage.