Which Classic to Watch Tonight - Pearl HarborDirecter: Michael Bay
Producer: Jerry Bruckheimer Michael Bay
Writter: Randall Wallace
Starring: Ben AffleckJosh Hartnett Kate Beckinsale Cuba Gooding, Jr.Tom Sizemore Jon Voight Colm Feore Mako Alec Baldwin
Music: Hans Zimmer
Cinematography: John Schwartzman
Editing: Chris Lebenzon Mark Goldblatt Steven Rosenblum
Running time: 183 minutes
It is a dramatic re-imagining of the Empire of Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor Naval Base and the subsequent Doolittle Raid and was produced by Bay and Jerry Bruckheimer, who had previously worked on blockbusters such as Armageddon and The Rock. Some of its scenes were among the last to be filmed in Technicolor.
Ben Affleck stars as Rafe, a cocky fighter pilot who lives to fly. Josh Hartnett is his lifelong buddy, Danny, an equally talented flyer, and Rafe's polar opposite in the personality department. He's mild-mannered, humble, even a bit of an introvert. Their friendship has endured since their youth, growing up together on a farm, dreaming of becoming pilots. Both end up as pilots stationed together in the U.S. Air Force, honing their talents and chomping at the bit to put their fighter pilot skills to the test in actual combat.
Kate Beckinsale, looking beautiful and straight out of a 1940's glamour magazine, is Evelyn, the nurse who wins the hearts of both Rafe and Danny. Rafe meets her first during an examination to determine fitness for duty. He charms and clowns his way into a date, and the two fall quickly in love. Rafe leaves Evelyn and Danny behind when he volunteers for a tour of duty with the British Royal Air Force. As a member of the highly respected "Eagle Squadron," Rafe battles the Nazis while America remains uninvolved in combat. Word reaches Danny in Pearl Harbor that Rafe has been shot down and is presumed dead. Danny and Evelyn eventually turn to each other for comfort, and wind up in each other's arms.
The love story consumes a good two-thirds of the film with military maneuverings and the attack on Pearl Harbor taking a backseat to the romance. True, the love story is a bit clichéd and the history lesson included in the film is oversimplified. However, as "Saving Private Ryan" proved so stunningly able to do, this film brings the war and the honorable men and women who lived through it or died fighting it, back to the collective forefront of the minds of audiences who, prior to the film, may not recall much about the battle. Chances are good an overwhelming percentage of filmgoers who pay to see this romantic drama based on the devastatingly real event, weren't even alive on December 7, 1941.
The film alternates between gritty realism and moments of levity. Real historical figures Col. James H. Doolittle (Alec Baldwin) and Doris "Dorie" Miller (Cuba Gooding, Jr. in a minor role that should have been given more screen time) are sprinkled throughout the film, adding a touch of authenticity to the daring-do of the main fictional characters portrayed by Affleck and Hartnett. Baldwin and Gooding both steal scenes whenever their characters are involved in the action. The romance is one that's been done before, but it's affective, entertaining, and beautiful nonetheless. The battle scenes are impressive and overwhelming in their ability to seemingly transport you back in time. I'd recommend this to anyone who isn't looking for an exact retelling of history but is interested in a gripping fictional account of the months leading up to the start of America's involvement in World War II.
Movie Gooro Rating: * * * 1/2 Stars
