Emperor

Tommy Lee Jones has the standout role in this doggedly earnest docudrama, but a less imposing character played by Matthew Fox is at the center of most of the action. After the surrender of Japan in World War II, General Douglas MacArthur (Jones) must decide whether the Emperor Hirohito should be included among those charged with war crimes. He orders Gen. Bonner Fellers (Fox), an “expert” on the Japanese, to conduct the investigation. The script (by David Klass and Vera Blasi) is a blandly earnest history lesson with a half-hearted romantic subplot upping the ante a little on matters of cultural differences. Jones gives the thing some charming swagger at the start and finish, while Fox plugs away in a role that is both catalytic and marginal. Pageant Theatre and Paradise Cinema 7. Rated PG-13.