As far as I know, no one has tried to figure out why two of the most popular theatrical releases of 2000 in Japan were "The Green Mile" and "Dancer in the Dark," movies whose dramatic core involved capital punishment and whose moral compass pointed toward the opinion that noncombat state-sanctioned killing is inhumane.

Both films have since passed into rental videoland, but I think such a study would be timely right now since the national media has recently shown signs that it no longer regards the death penalty as an unassailable part of the legal system.

On Dec. 28, it was revealed that two deathrow inmates, one in Nagoya and one in Tokyo, had been executed the previous day. Normally, the press reports executions briefly and without comment, but the timing of these particular events was seen to coincide with a season -- the New Year's break -- when media and public attention is occupied elsewhere. It was obvious that the government, which must approve death sentences, wanted as little publicity as possible.