MovieChat Forums > The Man in the High Castle (2015) Discussion > Small problem with the decor

Small problem with the decor

posted 8 years ago by rustygilligan
4 replies | jump to latest

One thing that I've noticed in this show is the decor... or lack thereof.
With the war being over for so long, I would think that the victors (Germans/Japanese)would spruce up the decor more in their acquired territories.
Their offices and headquarters show their distinct characteristics... but with this thorough of a victory, and the amount of time that's passed, you would think there would be banners in the streets, mandatory insignia usage in people's houses, etc (mostly regarding the inner cities and residential areas)... especially with what an ego-maniac Hitler was, and how the Japanese were so religious and culturally prideful.
Also, both races were very 'clean'... 'neat freaks' if you will (this was even alluded to in a few episodes)... and the streets and architecture would've been modified to fit the victors.
This was more than just an occupation, this was an annex and take-over.
The neutral area is perfect, bombed out and devoid of hope.
Other than that - this show is fascinating, and I hope it lasts a long time.

[–] torpeau 8 years ago

I'm guessing the population of the US was roughly the same as Germany & Japan. Both of those countries may have suffered damage, so they may have spent most of the time rebuilding their own countries. Germans & Japanese are two ethnic groups not races.

[–] ehaas-3 8 years ago

New York looks pretty orderly except for a few rough neighborhoods.

My only complaint about the Japanese sector is that after 15-17 years, they haven't made the Americans do some basic repairs and give the place a fresh coat of paint. Otherwise, I think it looks cool.

The classic pre-war architecture is actually beautiful in my opinion and the touches like Japanese lanterns are nice. They are presented as liking classic Americana, so I think they'd preserve or rebuild a lot of the city to something like it's previous state with added Japanese elements. San Francisco is one of America's most architecturally interesting cities.

[–] torpeau 8 years ago

Don't forget that Japanese quality greatly improved AFTER WW2 because they followed the advice of W.E. Deming, an American.

[–] kstrumpf 8 years ago

The overall grubbiness of the place, especially of the Japanese zone, is supposed to symbolize the beaten down nature of the population. I agree that in real life it would have been fixed up better but I suspect this was a deliberate design decision for the show.