 Movies were also used in other conquered Asian countries usually with the theme of Japan as Asia's savior against the Western tyrants or spoke of the history of friendly relations between the countries with films such as, "The Japan You Don't Know".China's rich history and exotic locations made it a favorite topic of Japanese film makers for over a decade before the outbreak of the second Sino-Japanese War (1937-1945).Of particular note were a popular trio of "continental goodwill films" (大陸親善映画) set throughout the Chinese continent and starring Hasegawa Kazuo as the Japanese male romantic lead with Ri Kōran (Yoshiko Yamaguchi) as his Chinese love interest.