Director: Roland Emmerich
Running
Time: 138 Minutes
Rating: 12a
Starring: Ed Skrein, Patrick Wilson, Woody Harrelson, Luke
Evans, Mandy Moore, Luke Kleintank, Dennis Quaid, Aaron Eckhart, Keean
Johnson, Nick Jonas, Etsushi Toyokawa, Tadanobu Asano, Darren Criss, Nobuya
Shimamoto, Jake Weber, Brennan Brown, Alexander Ludwig
For his
latest directorial feature, Roland Emmerich begins where Michael Bay once
covered, with the horrific attack on Pearl Harbour. It's the catalyst for this
films story, which leads to the US and Japanese naval forces engaging in
further conflict, all building up to an integral battle over the fate of Midway
Atoll. A passion project for the director, he initially attempted to get it made
in the '90s, but the $100 million budget was a roadblock for studio executives.
Now that the years have passed, and such a film budget is more commonplace,
Emmerich has finally managed to get this feature film made. Looking at the end
product, it feels fitting to have been crafted by the director of Independence
Day: Resurgence.
Don't get
me wrong, the intent is certainly there. The time is taken to evenly show both
sides to this war, as the US and Japanese forces get their hands dirty, and it
wants to be a stirring experience that honours all those who took part in this
battle. It's a shame that Wes Tooke's script seems preoccupied on embracing
banal tropes, and ends up feeling like an empty headed exercise.
A
sprawling cast has been assembled, each inhabiting their own part of the story
which makes up the larger picture. While they're all vital to the real life
story, an uneven handling leaves a number of them to get the short end of the
stick, and as the plot progresses on, once vital characters are left in the
dust. You'll understandably forget they were ever in the film, until they
suddenly pop up much later on in the running time.
Spare a
thought for the cast-members, as the script gives little for them to hang their
roles onto. It feels improper to say they portray characters, rather than
cliches moulded into human form, and given sentience. Take Ed Skrein,
portraying the hotshot pilot who constantly makes risky moves which would kill
him, were he not essentially the films protagonist. Patrick Wilson fares no
better, as he permanently wears a furrowed brow, in a constant attempt to
make-up for his failure to stop Pearl Harbour. It's also worth mentioning the
female performers, such as Mandy Moore and Rachel Perrell Fosket, because it's
more than the film allows them to do. While the men propel the plot, the
women's existence relies on looking worried, and being a part of expository
dialogue. Nothing more, nothing less.
As
somebody who failed History Class, I cannot comment on how accurate this film
is in depicting the actual events. What I can say is that the end credits
showcase the real life figures, explaining what became of them, and gives
visual justification for why Woody Harrelson is made to wear such an awful
looking wig. It pays respect to those who were behind this battle, and is sadly
the bow on a bloated feature with tiresome action sequences. By the end of it,
all that makes this feature distinguishable from other War films is there being
a character named Dick Best.
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