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Pearl Harbor
Review by Mike Furches (Mike's bio)
Directed by Michael Bay
Written by Randall Wallace
Ben Affleck .... Rafe McCawley
Josh Hartnett .... Danny Walker
Kate Beckinsale .... Evelyn Johnson
William Lee Scott .... Billy
Greg Zola .... Anthony Winkle
Ewen Bremner .... Red
Alec Baldwin .... Doolittle
James King .... Betty
Catherine Kellner .... Barbara
Jennifer Garner .... Sandra
Michael Shannon .... Theo
Jon Voight .... President Roosevelt
Cuba Gooding Jr. .... Doris 'Dorie' Miller
Matthew Davis .... Joe
Mako .... Admiral Yamamoto
John Fujioka .... Nishikura
Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa .... Genda
Colm Feore .... Admiral Kimmel
Dan Aykroyd .... Captain Thurman
Reiley McClendon .... Young Danny
Jesse James .... Young Rafe
William Fichtner .... Danny's Father
Tom Everett .... Presidential Aide
PG-13 - for sustained intense war sequences, images of wounded, brief sensuality and some language.
I am one that generally loves patriotic movies and was excited about seeing Pearl Harbor from the first moment I saw the trailers last summer. I still believe that The Patriot with Mel Gibson is one of the best releases of a patriotic movie during the traditional holiday season. Pearl Harbor has certainly received a great deal of hype and promotion and is expected to be one of the top movies this year. While many of my heightened expectations were let down from the film, there were a few things that I liked and think make the film worthwhile.
Pearl Harbor starts off wonderfully with the childhood dreams of dear friends Rafe McCawley played by Ben Affleck and Danny Walker played wonderfully by Josh Hartnett. The opening scene shows two young boys in a barn playing in an old bi-plane dreaming of being pilots and fighting the Germans.
Later on the boys climb into the empty cockpit of a dust cropper which is flown by Danny's father. They accidentally start the plane and take it down a grassy runway in the Tennessee foothills. Danny's father becomes very upset and slaps him telling him that he had told him not to play with that boy (Rafe) because, "He is no good." Rafe hits him with a wooden board and confronts him, calling him a, "Dirty German." Danny's father, played by William Fichtner changes character almost immediately, telling him that he fought against the Germans in the Great War. Realizing what he had done the father becomes very upset. As he walks across the field alone, Danny runs after him only to have his father place his arm around his son. Danny returns the embrace. This opening scene does as much to display the horror of war as any in the movie.
The friendship between Rafe and Danny continues and as is expected, they both turn into hot-shot pilots for the Army. As the war develops in Europe, the United States and Japan continue negotiations regarding their relationship. Times are good for America, the distance between America and the war gives a false sense of security. We all know what eventually happens and the results of the war. While we have a fictionalized account involving the various characters in film, the film is filled with many thought provoking scenes and events.
War is an event fought on the battlefield and within the lives of individuals. Pearl Harbor does a good job at displaying this. Lives and struggles that are led in private and are lost on the field of battle are displayed well in the film. One of the highlights I especially appreciated was the development of some of the primary characters and their struggles. Rafe does something appreciated from a Christian view when he has the opportunity to have sex with his girlfriend before going to fight alongside the British in Europe. He refuses stating that he doesn't want to do something that he will later regret. It is nice to see a well liked character being played with some moral values, especially in the area of sexuality.
Two other components of the film which impressed me were the special effects from Industrial Light and Magic. They should be considered for an Academy Award nomination. This company continues to take film to a new level and the special effects and flight sequences in this film are among the best I have seen. The second is the part of President Roosevelt played by Jon Voight. This is the best acting by Voight since his role in Coming Home. It will be hard to imagine five other actors at the end of the year more deserving of an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor than Voight. He does not waste a single second of on air time as Roosevelt. This has to be one of the best portrayals of an American President ever on film and must bring joy to those with physical challenges, supporters of Roosevelt and the remaining family members. I can not imagine a more enjoyable feeling from an actor than to receive the appreciation of these various groups and recognition from his fellow actors.
With the above said it would appear that I really liked this movie but to be honest I have to say I was disappointed. While the acting of Voight and the special effects of Industrial Light and Magic were spectacular, I believe the movie left something to be desired. After leaving the theater it was as if the movie had something missing and I just couldn't put my finger on it. After seeing the film and thinking about it I believe that there was too many plot twists in the film and that the movie tried to draw us into the lives of too many characters.
There are two older films that deal with the subject matter covered in Pearl Harbor that I believe do a much better job. Bridge to the Sun is the true story of Johnson City, Tennessee native Gwen Terasaki who fell in love with a Japanese Ambassador and later married him prior to the start of World War 2. She ends up living in Japan with her husband during the war. The other, Tora! Tora! Tora!, is also a classic film that deals well with the horrors of war. Pearl Harbor is worth seeing just to see Voight and the special effects. It is not a great movie and if you go to it with high expectations you may be disappointed as I was.
On a scale of 1 - 10, Pearl Harbor bombed for me with a 5.
Copyright 2001, Mike Furches. All Rights Reserved. Used by permission.
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About Mike Furches: Mike is the senior pastor of United at the Cross Community Church in Wichita, Kansas. The church, located in the inner city of Wichita has a unique ministry to former gang members, drug addicts, prostitutes and others often neglected by the church. Mike also is involved in freelance writing and speaks nationally. Check out his web page for more information: http://www.furches.org/ E-mail Mike |
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