This Review Reveals Minor Details About the Plot.
See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil.
Plot Overview
“Pearl Harbor” interweaves
three dramas, the first being, See no evil. Two
boys grew up in Tennessee in the aftermath of the Great War.
Rafe the older one acquired a love of flying from his dad who owns
& flies a crop duster. He played airplanes with his
younger neighbor Danny whose father (William Fichtner)
disapproved of Rafe a “stupid boy, can't read.”
The father had fought the Germans in the trenches and
“pray[s] to God no one has to see the things I saw.” We
don't see them, and they probably wouldn't be allowed on the big
screen anyway. When grown up they go to enlist in the Army Air
Corps. Pretty nurse Evelyn Johnson (Kate Beckinsale) passes
Rafe McCawley (Ben Affleck) on his eye exam even though he tripped
over some of the letters—on account of his dyslexia—and
Danny Walker (Josh Hartnett) standing behind him has to “wait
your turn.” Rafe and Evelyn begin a torrid love affair, then
Rafe volunteers for the British Eagle Squadron to help in the
Battle of Britain. Word arrives that he'd been shot down over the
English Channel. His devastated friend and girl each seek escape at
the comedy playing, “The Great
Dictator.” When the newsreel shows a British plane
being shot down in flames, they exit the theater not being able to
watch. Connecting outside they repair to the Black Cat Diner
where as luck would have it some of their friends passing by see
them through the window. Some of them recommend that enough time
has passed that they can “move on.” Another suggests
that if Rafe looking down from heaven sees his best friend making
time with his special girl, he's like to come down and sock the
bum. This results in quite a Gordian knot.
The second drama is, hear no evil.
Japan has been adventuring in the Far East. The US cuts off their oil supply
leaving them their only option to go to war. They meticulously plan
a surprise attack on Pearl Harbor where the Navy has berthed its
big boats. When the Japanese fleet is about in position, they tune
in to Hawaiian radio station KGMB, Honolulu, to hear the DJ announce a beautiful, sunny day in
paradise, so they know they're not expected. They initiate a devastating
attack on the sleeping island. The nurses now find themselves called
to action. They fill coke bottles with needed blood.
The third drama is, speak no evil. The British flyboys in their air battle are from the most elite schools come to do their patriotic duty. They but compliment the hayseed Yank for his bravery. The Navy nurses don't demand to march with the boys but are thankful for their numbers, looking forward to meeting them on the beach. Eminently respected business writer Peter F. Drucker tells us:
Throughout man's history, and above all, among primitive peoples, work groups have always been sexually differentiated. Men work together and women work together. But we rarely hear, either in history or in cultural anthropology, of work groups of mixed sex. Men hunt and women tend the village. Men build boats and women grow yams. In Europe women have traditionally milked cows, in America men; but on neither side of the Atlantic has milking been done by sexually mixed groups. (188)
Women are also seen in quiet clerical roles in the military offices and as a silent stenographer for the president's meetings.
Military efficiency seems to be
enhanced by racial homogeneity. The Japs are Mongoloid, the Boche
Aryan, and the Yanks Caucasian, the latter in a melting pot
indicated by their accents. The blacks work in the galley &
scullery and the president has a Negro wheelchair attendant.
Petty Officer Doris Miller (Cuba Gooding Jr.,) however, is one to complain because he
joined the Navy to see the world and become a man. Looks to me like
a man, albeit a colored one. He could peel potatoes like nobody's
business from his Texas heritage, freeing needed bunk space for his paler
mates. The army needs carbs just as they needed air for the trapped sailors
in the torpedoed ships where they couldn't get it to them fast enough.
Ideology
The romance(s) that blossom between leads is not so compelling as to be anticipated were it not for the movie world preparing us for it. Think along the lines of, (Proverbs 30:18-19) “There be three things which are too wonderful for me, yea, four which I know not: The way of an eagle in the air; the way of a serpent upon a rock; the way of a ship in the midst of the sea; and the way of a man with a maid.” The writer of this Good Book's saying cannot track an eagle drifting on the air, a slithering serpent on a rock, or a ship tossed on the sea, much less “the way of a man with a maid.”
Here instead of an eagle up in the sky we observe feisty boys, age 8 & younger, playing with a dad's parked biplane, energizing it, and bumping up into the air, barely. We'll see a romance barely get off the ground.
“The way of a serpent upon a rock” corresponds to taxiing down a runway altogether too short, but it has to do to launch the plane. Wartime romances have to happen quickly if at all.
“The way of a ship in the midst of the sea” corresponds to a water rescue. A floundering romance can sometimes be saved.
It's hard to tell exactly how “the way of a man with a maid” will work out, but we're somewhat prepared.
Production Values
“” (2001) was directed by Michael Bay. It was written by Randall Wallace. It stars Ben Affleck, Kate Beckinsale and Josh Hartnett. These leads were okay but no Titanic. The supporting cast was loaded with talent. Cuba Gooding was typecast as an uppity Negro who takes his blows and gets his due.
MPA rated it PG–13 for sustained intense war sequences, images of wounded, brief sensuality and some language. The film was technically well made. Of note was a device used for changing scenes employing B&W stock footage going to B&W current action swiftly colorized, so we remain immersed in the film. As author Sean O'Brien has pointed out, “Elizabeth I's fire ships and the London Blitz had all worked rather well in black and white” (116), so nothing was lost and much gained. The action set pieces were amazing! A rousing music score accompanied the film. Runtime is 3 hours 3 minutes.
Review Conclusion w/a Christian's Recommendation
Under the exigencies of war we get prayer, confession, and last
rites. There's even a Christlike sacrifice for one's fellow fighter.
The action is first class. The romance is protracted but the time was needed to work it out. It is what it is. Enjoy!
Movie Ratings
Action factor: Edge of your seat action. Suitability for Children: Suitable for children 13+ years with guidance. Special effects: Absolutely amazing special effects. Video Occasion: Fit For a Friday Evening. Suspense: Keeps you on the edge of your seat. Overall movie rating: Four stars out of five.
Works Cited
Scripture was quoted from the King James Version. Pub. 1611, rev. 1769. Print. Software.
Drucker, Peter F. Management London: Heinemann, 1974. Print.
O'Brien, Sean. Afterlife. Copyright © Sean O'Brien 2009. London: Picador, 2009. Print.
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