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Pearl Harbor (2001)
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Genre: |
Drama |
Director: |
Michael Bay
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Rating: |
PG-13 |
Running Time: |
184 Minutes |
Release Date: |
May 25, 2001 |
Official Website: |
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Movie Trailer: |
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Discuss and vote: |
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Cast: |
Ben Affleck
Josh Hartnett
Kate Beckinsale
Ewen Bremner
Alec Baldwin
James King
Jon Voight
Cuba Gooding Jr.
Mako
Colm Feore
Dan Aykroyd
Tom Sizemore
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Pickup Line: Not Exactly A Gem Of A Movie
Quickie: Just in case you've never heard of the bombing of Pearl Harbor, they've made a movie about it. This 3-hour long film is about a love triangle that takes place during World War II. Awww...It's nice to know that people find time to fall in love while bombs are dropping and people are dying.
The Long Review:
"Pearl Harbor" is a romance disguised in a war movie. If you're thinking of watching it with the hopes of learning some valuable historical facts, don't bother. Teach you facts it won't do...but make you cry with sappy scenes it will.
Plotwise, "Pearl Harbor" is short on explanation and high on action and emotion. Our best advice to you: Don't think. Just watch and feel. It's a movie that focuses on a love triangle that unfolds during the outbreak of World War II. Two best friends, Rafe McCawley and Danny Walker (Ben Affleck and Josh Hartnett), love the same girl (Kate Beckinsale) and their lives become just as screwed up as the war itself. There are a lot of sentimental (translation: mushy) moments, shed tears (translation: waterworks), and lost blood (translation: gore). Oh, and the movie tends to drag on in some parts, too. Granted, the director wanted us to get a real feel for the melodrama but c'mon!
Oh, the movie has a lot of awful dialogue as well. Sorry to say but we were laughing during what were supposed to be poignant moments in the film...thanks to the laughable lines being uttered by the poor actors who had to vocalize the script. Roger Ebert seems to have had a similar experience. According to him, "This movie has more howlers than the average comedy - and all of those lines are, of course, unintentionally funny." But at least the actors got paid say their lines. That makes it okay...not! Alec Baldwin, who plays General Dolittle and Jon Voight, who plays President Roosevelt get the most generous helpings of cheesy lines. Actually, in some scenes, we could have sworn Alec Baldwin was holding back laughter, as if he was performing skits for "Saturday Night Live." Who can blame him?
On a more positive note, the cast of "Pearl Harbor" does deliver strong performances, particularly Kate Beckinsale. We're going as far as to say that she is the heart and soul of this film. Ben Affleck is his usual heroic self, and Cuba Gooding, Jr. pretty much goes into his memory bank and recalls how he played the lead in "Men Of Honor." Whatever works, boys!
The cinematography, special effects, and production design are also noteworthy. There are some very cool aerial combat scenes heightened by clever camera angling; the spectacle that is the bombing of Pearl Harbor is very impressive and all-too-real; and the costuming is splendid. This was indeed a majestic production. If only they focused less on the pizzazz and more on the delivery on the story, we wouldn't have much cause for complain.
Overall, "Pearl Harbor" is better off seen on video or DVD. Actually, we bet you'll get a more comprehensive understanding of the bombing of Pearl Harbor if you watch this movie on DVD, since the DVD will most likely come with some informative documentaries and the like. But then again, you don't want to be the only one who skipped "Pearl Harbor." So chances are, you will watch it, regardless of what you know about it. So good luck to you, and for the love of God, go to the bathoom before entering the theatre. In case we haven't stressed our opinion enough, we'll leave you with Roger Ebert's words..."Pearl Harbor is a Titanic wannabe that falls far short of the mark. Even those who don't appreciate Titanic are likely to acknowledge how much better it is than Pearl Harbor on nearly every level." See? See?
In Two Minutes:
Did you know?
- This movie had a whopping $135 million budget. Geez! Couldn't they have used some of that money to hire professional writers?!
- To prepare for his role, Alec Baldwin took aviation lessons. The poor Baldwin crashed his helicopter five times in a row. That's okay, Alec. We bet the humiliation of that is nothing compared to the embarrassment of having to utter your terrible lines.
- Speaking of crash landings, a stunt pilot crashed his plane and sustained injuries while filming the bombing of Pearl Harbor. Ayayay.
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