“Black Box Diaries” - Film Review
“All I want to do is talk about the truth.” The concept of truth shouldn’t be something that’s up for debate, but as we’ve all learned, there is a difference between truth and reality. What do we have left as a society if we can’t agree on the truth? In terms of rape cases, everyone always wants the truth, but rarely accept the facts when they’re laid out in front of them. Shiori Itō wrote a memoir in 2017 detailing her sexual assault by Noriyuki Yamaguchi, head of the Tokyo Braodcasting System. The 2024 documentary directed by Itō, Black Box Diaries, follows the writing of the memoir, the civil case, and her fight for the truth.
In 2017, Itō was sexually assaulted by Yamaguchi. He was never arrested and Itō believed that her case wasn’t fully investigated due to Yamaguchi’s connections to powerful men, including prime minister Shinzo Abe. Black Box Diaries drops the audience into Itō's yearslong campaign to go public with her allegations. The title comes from the idea that no one can see what’s going on inside a black box, just like the internal workings of the Japanese judicial system aren’t seen by the public. It’s not common for those who have experienced sexual abuse or violence to speak out, which is what makes Itō’s journey all the more vulnerable and vital. Black Box Diaries is an intimate look at her journey, the highs and the lows, in Itō’s valiant attempt to shake up longstanding institutions.
Courtesy of MTV Documentary Films
It can be difficult to be both the director and the subject of a documentary. One might be so close to the material that they can’t see the forest for the trees, and the end product can be muddled in a way that hinders its message. This cannot be said of Black Box Diaries. Itō’s clarity, while going through one of the worst experiences of her life, is impressive and a little distressing. She even admits that for much of this process she hasn’t been taking care of herself. Instead, she sees her case as a symbol of something far larger than herself, and that can be detrimental to her own mental health. Yes, this case could have massive ramifications for the Japanese judicial system, but at the end of the day, Itō needs to find her own comfort. When the case ends and the news stops swirling around her, will she be okay?
Black Box Diaries is brave and absolutely harrowing. The audience feels the stress, the claustrophobia, and the loneliness that comes with Itō’s decision to take her battle to the public. We’re in the thick of things, and setback after setback appears out of thin air. It’s discouraging, but necessary. Change comes from the brave, and that is Itō and the tight-knit crew who helps navigate the legal waters. The film’s most striking characteristic is the power it places on being seen. Rape vicitms are often portrayed as faceless or anonymous, but the cameras of Black Box Diaries are almost always trained on Itō. The voices of the news pundits and those who oppose Itō are heard but not seen for most of the film. It’s a powerful upending of preconceived notions for documentary filmmaking, and one that places the intensity in the hands of Itō.
Courtesy of MTV Documentary Films
“‘I’m still here.’ I wanted him to know,” Itō says as she recounts her deposition – her perpetrator was in the room. For as many times as Black Box Diaries sees Itō cry, there are instances of joy. There’s so much sweetness in the way her friends rally around her and in the way she and a friend dance wildly in the backseat of a car to Gloria Gaynor’s “I Will Survive.” It’s a fun disco number, but the lyric, “for as long as I know how to love / I know I’ll stay alive” resonates profoundly with Itō and the thousands of people around the world who share a similar experience. Black Box Diaries is a powerful reckoning and a celebration of persistence in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds.
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