Midway – Extra Credit
The recent movie, Midway, focuses on the most pivotal naval battle in the war in the Pacific in World War 2. As you might know, there were two phases of World War 2 that America fought in – the war in Africa then Europe, and then the war in the Pacific Ocean. Our primary enemy in the Pacific was the Japanese navy, and they had struck a huge blow to the American Pacific fleet by bombing Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941. That event got America finally into the war, and that’s where the movie starts off. The attack on the fleet at Pearl Harbor represented the greatest intelligence failure in American history at that time (only to be exceeded by the 9/11/01 terrorist attacks), and so the movie spends some time following the exploits of intelligence chief, Edwin Layton (played by Patrick Wilson) and how he tries to figure out with his team where the Japanese navy is headed next.
The movie also spends time showing how real people – American Admirals Halsey, Nimitz, and Spruance and Japanese Admirals Yamamoto and Nagumo – along with the pilots – Dick Best, Wade McCluskey, and Jimmy Doolittle – fought and led in the battle. I like that the film decided not to invent fictional characters to add extra drama or tragedy into the story, because the real people were colorful enough.
I also found the portrayal of the Japanese army and navy interesting and at times, inconsistent. In the credits at the end, the movie was dedicated to both the American and Japanese soldiers who fought in the Battle of Midway. The Japanese admirals are shown to be thoughtful (like Yamamoto’s warning to Layton in 1937 about America backing Japan into a corner) and strategic and honorable. Even when one of the admirals decides to go down with his carrier, his sacrifice is treated with dignity. But the Japanese army was shown to be arrogant and also amazingly cruel and sadistic with the way that they treated the Chinese civilians during their invasion of China beginning in 1931 (it’s estimated that the Japanese army killed 6 million Chinese during their occupation and war with China 1931-1945). The Japanese have never taken responsibility for these deaths nor apologized officially to the Chinese, so this might be a sore spot. We also see a captured American pilot killed mercilessly after he wouldn’t tell what aircraft carrier he took off from.
The movie doesn’t break any new ground, however, and doesn’t really develop its real-life heroes into fully developed characters. They just seem to be cardboard cut-outs, two
dimensional characters who are focused on honor and duty and destroying as many Japanese carriers but without the racism of the time period. There is a lot of American war propaganda that dehumanized the Japanese (see example to the right) that reflected a lot of anti – Asian racism that had been endemic since the mid 1800s when the Chinese arrived on our shores because of the California gold rush. Some historians argue that racism was a motivating factor in the use of the atomic bombs on Japan (though not the only reason). But I think the movie doesn’t want to get bogged down in realism and instead tells an idealized story about the battle of Midway.
One of the really cool things that I enjoyed seeing was the inclusion of film director John Ford who was working for the U.S. Army and had luckily arrived in Midway unknowingly before the attack. His job was to make a film that Americans would see at home to rally support for the war. Ford luckily was there to actually capture the battle in real time and was able to make a documentary about the battle. He also was filming soldiers at the D-Day invasion. Recently on Netflix, there is a 3 part film called Five Came Back that examines five Hollywood directors who made films about World War 2 and how the war affected them. I highly recommend it.
Questions to answer:
- Why do you think there is inconsistent portrayal of the Japanese military? Might it have something to do with the Chinese production company who helped produce the movie? By honoring the Japanese military, do you think this signifies that American – Japanese relations are improving? Why or why not?
- How is this movie realistic? Also how is this movie a reflection of modern movie making (think CGI and other digital effects)?
- Do you think the movie should have just focused on the battle of Midway or do you think that the earlier scenes of the attack on Pearl Harbor, Doolittle’s raid over Japan, and the Solomon and Marshall Islands battles help set up the context for the battle of Midway? Why?
- What are the strengths of the film? Explain. What are the weaknesses of the film? Explain.
The ways in which I believe this movie was realistic is probably the way in which the planes were flown into the american ship in the beginning of the movie. I think this part seemed pretty realistic because the Americans clearly did not see this attack coming and were extremely unprepared when hit. Some parts of this movie that I believe represent more of the modern movie making are some of the explosions. I think that the explosions of the boats being blown up and when they were sinking were a little over exaggerated.
I think that if they had just shown the battle of midway it would have not have had enough action. I think that by showing the battles that lead up to midway it provided more context for the watchers who were not previously informed on this battle. Even when they did show the battles it was still a little hard to understand what was going on with all of the wars and where they were. If they had not shown these battles leading up i would have became more distracted than I would’ve liked
I think one of the best strengths of this movie was all the action they showed. This helped keep me entertained through such a long movie. All the action also looked really good and it was hard to tell it was fake. Another one of my favorite parts was when they showed the engine dying in dick best’s plane and him landing on the ship safely. I thought that this was really cool because they gave us a sneak peak when he practiced it earlier into the movie as to what was going to happen. One of the biggest weaknesses of this movie was when they showed the movie being created on midway island. I thought that this was pretty unnecessary to the movie. It seemed like the directors were trying to add funny elements to the movie that really were not needed. All this scene actually did was distract from the important parts of the movie. In all, I think that this scene was not extremely detrimental to the movie and it was still good even though they added this unnecessary scene.
The inconsistent portrayal of the Japanese military in the movie probably has little to do with the Chinese production company. The Japanese army is shown as cruel, fanatical, and unreasonable in some scenes, such as when the American pilot was executed for refusing to reveal what carrier he was from. But in other scenes, mainly in the end of the movie, the Japanese are shown as dignified and honorable, such as when Admiral Yamaguchi went down with his carrier, letting anyone leave the ship without him, and even refusing a young sailor’s request to stay with him. While these inconsistencies could be viewed as evidence of Chinese influence on some parts of the movie and not others, it is also a mostly accurate of depiction of what the Japanese military and culture looked like at the time, which leads me to believe that the producers of the movie were most likely simply trying to show a more accurate depiction of the army and its culture, with all of its contradictions included.
The movie was very realistic for several reasons. It showed itself to be historically accurate, if not lacking a little nuance in some parts, and showed realistic depictions of battles in the Pacific, not just limited to Midway itself. Midway is also a reflection of modern movie making, with almost all battle scenes featuring heavy computer generated effects, such as planes, ships, bomb explosions, and more. Even with the heavy CGI, the movie is still very well done and the CGI doesn’t take away from the experience of the movie at all.
I think that the inclusion of the previous Pacific engagements was necessary to set up context for the Battle of Midway. Without knowing the things that caused the battle to happen in the first place, and without knowing the culture of defeatism that was in parts of the navy at the time, the battle would be much less understandable, and the decisions and thoughts of characters wouldn’t be easy to understand. It also gives characters a chance to develop throughout the story, and it shows the events that helped make them who they are by the time of the battle.
This movie was realistic for several reasons, such as the way they portrayed the attack at pearl harbor and the portrayal of the conflict on the waters near midway. the intensity and realism shown by the movie during these scenes was able to produce a feeling of loss even though, you, the viewer did not actually lose anything. Another aspect of the realism presented in this movie, is how they portrayed the loss of life in the film. Many planes were shot down and many men lost their lives in the fighting at sea, and the movie was able to accurately show the devastating affects it had on the fellow sailors and pilots. Many of the fighting scenes were largely contributed to CGI technology being able to produce replica’s and demonstrations of explosions.
The earlier scenes such as the meeting early on in the movie between the UK navy and the Japanese navy, were very important to the plot. Understanding the events leading up to such a large conflict such as what happened at midway is essential to really understanding the movie. Without the “talking” scenes the movie would just be all action, and the story of why midway happened and the people involved would not be understood as well. Setting up the context for the movie, with some earlier conflicts and the background as to why Pearl harbor was able to occur even with possible knowledge of the Japanese attack are ways to add depth to the movie and keep people interested throughout the entire film.
Strengths of the film could include the representation of the Japanese navy as well as the American navy. By representing both sides of the conflict, instead of just the winners you can see in a broader spectrum why the conflict truly happened, and the important figures and men behind the fighting. Some weaknesses of the film were How they made it an American comeback story, the odds were bad but the film did exaggerate a few important points to make it so the Americans were in even deeper trouble throughout the film. Overall I think the film did a great job of representing both sides of the war in the Pacific, and the leadership behind both the Japanese navy and the American navy.
2. Midway was realistic in the portrayal of the attack on Pearl Harbor. The actors on screen were very surprised about the attack, and the panic that spread throughout the island with loved ones trying to locate the missing people I thought was very lifelike. I also thought how the cryptographers struggled to break the Japanese codes were realistic as well. The film reflects modern movie making in the (over)use of CGI, which at some points was very well done, like during some fighter plane close ups, but at other times was kind of a distraction, (the beginning shot where they panned the ship with people working out on deck).
3. I believe that if the film just focused on the battle of Midway, it wouldn’t be as good as using other events. One of the most important aspects of moviemaking is setting the scene, and if the attack on Pearl Harbor wasn’t included, it would be harder for moviegoers, especially younger audiences, to understand the motive behind the battle of Midway. Showing the Pearl Harbor scene helped to explain the characters rage towards Japan and why they went to war with them. If only Midway was featured in the movie, it would be harder for audiences to understand the origins and causes of the battle.
4. Overall, the strengths of the film were the acting, and the theme. The acting was very well done, especially by Ed Skrein, except I think that is accent was a little over the top. The theme of the film I thought was strong, which I interpreted as team work and banding together against a common foe. The movie fulfilled its purpose at being entertaining as well. The fighter plane scenes left me at the edge of my seat. There were also flaws in the movie. The over reliance on CGI was one of them. By utilizing visual effects, the film was able to bring the viewer into the fight alongside the fighter planes and ships, which made you feel better connected to the characters. But sometimes the CGI was super distracting due to its unrealism. The budget for this movie was about half as that of Dunkirk’s and that shows when comparing the visual effects between the two films. In addition, I thought that Midway focused on too many characters, and instead should of focused on one or two, preferably Dick Best and Edwin Layton. This would allow the film the screen time to dive into the backstories behind these characters and show how their families were affected by their husband’s/father’s absence. These elements were briefly addressed during its runtime, but because there was so much action going on, the audience never grew that attached to any one character, which I see as a flaw in the making of this film.
Question one
I Think the inconsistent portrayal of the Japanese military throughout the movie was a product of multiple things. First I think the movie wanted to show the dichotomy of enemies and allies, for example, Japan and the US had been on the same side in WW1 and wanted to warn the US it would take drastic measures if its supplies were taken away. I also think this isn’t entirely a thoughtful move, japan wanted to let the US know this to also secure their oil supply. But then once the US stops selling oil to japan, they see the US as an enemy and have no sympathy. This can be seen in the cruel killings of their enemies, Chinese and American. I also think there is a difference in culture that kind of leads to this portrayal. According to the movie, honor played a big part in the Japanese navy, so it makes sense that the movie shows these men were honorable. But also when it comes to the ruthless killing that doesn’t go against their honor like letting your ship sink without its captain might. I also to humanize and give dignity to these Japanese captains and admirals because even though they did awful things, it wasn’t entirely because they were bad people, but they were blindly following their emperor, who was a heavenly figure. Therefore I’m not sure the portrayal is entirely inconsistent and I think the inconsistent parts, are inconsistent on purpose.
Question two
I think that the movie was pretty realistic. It had to use a lot of CGI and digital effects because there were a lot of explosions and battle scenes that probably could not have been done without these special effects. I think it represents how as digital effects grow better they get used more often which makes sense, but that also leads to more explosions and more things that would need special effects. This is because when digital effects weren’t as good, using them a lot might not have looked good or realistic, which meant they had to use different methods or simpler scenes. Overall in the movie, I didn’t feel like they tried to make something look a lot better than it actually was, in other words, I think it at the very least attempt to give an accurate representation. The movie even showed malfunctions and times when both sides made bad moves.It didn’t try to make the US armed forces look invincible.
Question three
I believe it was important for the movie to show non-battle of Midway things like Pearl Harbor and the bombing of Tokyo. They help illustrate exactly why the battle of midway was a turning point, why it was so important, and why the characters were driven at midway which allowed them to succeed. Showing The surprise attack of Pearl Harbor was key to all of these things. It illustrates that the greatest intelligence failure of American history had happened and that even though the US was officially neutral the Japanese attacked anyways. This drove Edwin Layton to be better and allowed him and his code breakers to decipher and help set up the trap at midway. It also shows what helped to motivate the soldiers and pilots in the Pacific theatre. This inspiration from Pearl Harbor can be specifically seen in Dick Best, he lost a friend in the surprise attack and wanted to get revenge. It also shows how important and amazing the battle of midway was. The attack at Pearl Harbor was meant to cripple the US pacific fleet for a very long time but the ships were able to be operable by the time of midway. It also demonstrates that the US was outgunned and had inferior technology, which further shows the importance of midway and laying this trap for the Japanese. Doolittle’s bombing on Tokyo was also important because it demonstrated the risk the soldiers were willing to take and it showed drive to get back at the Japanese. Even though the movie was about midway these other smaller portions of the movie were much needed.
2.) Midway is realistic because they didn’t invent any new characters for the sake of making the movie more dramatic. It was based off of the real people and their actual actions. This movie is a reflection of modern movie making because it used a lot of CGI. It was so realistic it felt like you were right there as all of these events were taking place. This use of CGI and greenscreens allowed them to accurately recreate the battles and the attack on Pearl Harbour. The first movie that told the story of Midway was a documentary that was made up of actual footage shot by John Brown from the roof of a building.
3.) I liked that the movie showed earlier events that occurred in the Pacific. I feel like it gave context for the Battle of Midway. It also helped to show the high level of tension that was quickly escalating across the Pacific. Showing the attack on Pearl Harbour explained the Americans motivation for winning the war, they were angered by the loss of their friends. Doolittle’s raid also showed an effect on both the Japanese’s moral and the American’s. It helped escalate the tension between the two countries and drive both sides closer to the Battle of Midway. These earlier events made the victory at Midway mean more. After seeing, the Americans struggle for so long to win in the Pacific I understood how important this battle was in changing the tide of the war.
4.) One of the strengths of Midway, is that it keeps you engaged the whole time. It didn’t feel like it was dragging out any of the conversations or events, instead they were short but full of important information. By doing this the directors moved the story along quickly while still keeping in the important facts. For me the main weakness of Midway was that since there were so many characters I had trouble remembering who was who. Unlike the Current War, new characters’ names weren’t shown on the screen and I had trouble remembering people’s names for most of the movie.
I believe that Midway was very realistic. It shows how these events affected all the people, from the civilians to those in the force. The emotions that the people all went through captured how people really reacted back when it happened. The historical facts are also very accurate, although some things were left unquestioned. The movie sticks very well with all these men’s true stories, and displays them in a great way. I do think this was a reflection of modern movie making with all the amazing CGI. Despite some moments where the CGI was a bit off, I truly felt like I was there in the movie. This shows how advanced we’ve become with our technology, and this well done CGI was very important considering it was the entire movie pretty much.
No, I do not think that the movie should’ve just focused on Midway. I believe that it was vital for the movie to build up the context as well as show how we got up to the point of Midway. We are able to witness the effects of Pearl Harbor on the people and how we rose above the hardships. The battle of Midway was caused by a series of events in direct correlation to Pearl Harbor and the other scenes. For example, Edwin Layton’s regret from the Pearl Harbor attack led him to become more dominant when relaying his information from then on. Layton feels he didn’t warn his past superior enough about the Japanese attacking. Thus, when he and the decoders found that the Japanese were targeting Midway, he asserted himself and convinced Nimitz, leading to the victory. The attack on Pearl Harbor also heavily affected Dick Best. We see how he loses his best friend, and how this affects him mentally throughout the rest of the movie. He finds a new determination to get his revenge on Japan, which leads him to be a huge risk taker and an eventual hero.
The action and the acting was by far the biggest strengths of the movie. The CGI kept me thoroughly entertained without getting too repetitive or boring. The acting was also extremely well done. They did a great job of casting actors to suit the characters, and these actors portrayed their characters emotions and personality very well. The historical accuracy was quite good as well, portraying both sides of the war fairly equally and accurately. My biggest gripe with this movie is how many events they left open ended. After Bruno Gaido is sunk by an anchor, we never see what happened to his co-pilot, let alone see him again. I also wish they showed how the men and their families were affected after the battle of Midway, especially Best. Overall, I really enjoyed this movie and found the strengths to outweigh the flaws.
1. I think the movie shows inconsistencies portraying the Japanese Army and Navy for a few reason. Showing them as honorable warriors shows how Imperial Japan was still founded on a strong belief system and code of honor. This is illustrated when two commanding Japanese officers stay on board their carrier as it is getting destroyed when they could have evacuated. Compare this to the Japanese in China, where they make strafing runs designed just to kill civilians, and murder thousands for helping downed American pilots escape capture. This more cruel and harsh portrayal may not be so unrealistic after all. In some ways how we saw the Japanese as a lesser enemy than the Germans, the Japanese looked down on the Chinese. This racism between the two countries may have played a part in why they have so much less respect for the Chinese.
2. This movie is realistic in the portrayal of the pearl harbor attacks, as well as much of their CGI effects. The “battle” of pearl harbor really wasn’t a battle at all; it was a massacre. The depiction of ships burning, Japanese planes shooting at anything that moved, and thousands dead is not an exaggeration. In addition to this, the realism of the fires, explosions, and other CGI effects were all done very well. As technology continues to advance, it is no surprise that filmmakers want to keep making bigger and better movies. I do think the amount of fire and explosions were deliberately shown a number of times, in order to have more scenes where flashy CGI effects could be used.
3. I think the movie did an excellent job of building suspense and excitement leading up to the battle of midway, while also using other events to keep viewers interested and give context to the situation. Throughout the movie after the attacks on pearl harbor, there is a continuous theme of, “something bigger is coming.” This underlying theme eventually comes to light as the final battle commences. If the movie had dived right into the battle without any context, the whole movie would feel wrong. Instead, using pearl harbor, the Solomon islands, and Doolittle’s raid as stepping stones to the climax of the film, they bring an emotional movie to a peak by having viewers truly care about the character on the screen. Drawing on people’s ability to care about characters who they know more about (has a wife, kids, etc.) works out very well in the end.
2) I think Midway is a realistic movie due to the extreme amount of CGI. During all the battles we see an extreme amount of damage done to all the war ships and planes. The damage done to the ships looks very realistic, and wasn’t sloppy. All the scenes with the planes made it seem like the audience was in the plane with the pilot, or standing on the shore line as the planes and ships fire back and forth. There were even scenes where crew members were fixing the ship in the background, and it all looked real. There was almost no doubt that the actors were standing in front of a green or blue screen, but it brought the audience into every action sequence, every battle, and every heart wrenching moment.
3) I loved the way the movie showed us the battle of Pearl harbor. Showing us that battle not only gave the audience an extra action scene, and kept the start of the movie interesting, but it gave the characters conflict. The characters see what happened at Pearl Harbor and are angry, they now have personal reasons to win the war. Their friends died at Pearl Harbor, and they want revenge on the people that caused that. If the movie hadn’t shown us Pearl harbor the audience wouldn’t have been as inclined to relate to the characters. If the movie just stated the events of Pearl harbor, not all of the emotions would be captured, the fear in the sailors, the determination of the captions to save their men, or the anger of the people who heard of the attack.
4) The strengths of the film is definitely the emotions shown throughout the characters. We see angry and desperate men trying to avenge their dead friends. We see the worry that many men won’t return home to their families. The movie does a great job of showing everyone’s emotions and goals. In the end when the Japnease aircraft carrier is sinking we see the sympathy in the caption when he tells one of the crew members that he can’t go down with the ship. It shows us the worry in all of the commanders, and how most of them put the good of their crew before themselves. We see a wide array of emotions in this film from both sides of the war.
2. Midway was very realistic, the extra effects used in the movie really brought the viewer into the movie and what was actually happening at that time. The actors allowed the views to feel the shock of the attack and really made the viewer feel as though they were there as well. The movie also did a good job of representing how difficult it can be to go to war and still have a family at home waiting for you. Although the film does a good job of making the event feel very realistic, some of the events seemed exaggerated and over the top (CGI). The movie was historically accurate and did a good job of showing realistic battles in the Pacific.
3. The movie having included the precious attacks in the Pacific was very important. It allowed the views to have more context and allowed them to understand the meaning behind the battles a lot better. Without the context and showing of previous events, the viewer may be confused and not understand what is really happening. With the context, the view was able to get a sense of what was going on and was able to get to know the characters a lot better and on a deeper level of understanding.
4. Some strengths the film displayed was being able to represent both sides of the conflict (American and Japanese). I thought it allowed the view to see the bigger picture and understand that there were two sides to the conflict. I also think the filmmakers showing the process of cracking the Japanese codes was very important and really allowed the viewer to understand the process the Americans had to go through to arrive at victory. Some weaknesses of the film could be represented by the exaggerated scenes. It made the viewer think the Americans were in deeper trouble than what they really were in. Other than that one weakness, I think that the movie did a very good job at showing us what happened during this period of American history with good context. The movie had me at the edge of my seat.
2. This movie is realistic for two main reasons: character development and CGI. For character development, one of the easiest characters to look at is Dick Best. He starts off being a very cocky person, being so confident that he put others in danger. As the movie progresses, Dick is moved up the ranks and becomes a lot more concerned about the lives of other people. The character development is slow and is realistic as well. The acting in this film is great as well, and emotions portrayed in the film are easily transmitted to the viewer. The CGI is good as well, whereas each explosion and sinking ship is sometimes used consistently and sometimes makes sense. Not every impact made an explosion (such as the torpedoes the Americans used on the Marshall Islands), which is a good thing, as the effects team weren’t just focused on explosions. However, I still feel CGI was used WAAAAY too much. I’ll get to that later on number 4. This movie does reflect modern movie making, as a ton of CGI and effects were used to get a lasting effect on the viewer. Maybe too much. Definitely too much.
3. I feel like the background information was very helpful to the audience. If there was no context, I feel the audience would have no idea why people would be fighting at Midway. With context however, the movie feels like very little detail is left out, and it helps the movie be more enticing and more informative.
4. The main strengths of the film was the cinematography and acting. The shots used fit the tone of the movie very well. Each shot had a purpose, and no shots felt overused. Suspense was used very well throughout the movie, too. The acting wasn’t phenomenal, but it was enjoyable. I felt that each character was humanized very well, and had actual traits. No character felt bleak and boring. A major weakness the movie had was the CGI. Ok, in number 2, I lied. The effects team was definitely just focused on explosions.Yes, they were realistic, but did every shot on the ocean have to have one? This movie really put Michael Bay’s notorious explosive movies to shame. I have never seen that many explosions in five minutes in any other movie. The CGI was so overused that I feel that this movie’s entire budget was used on it.
The movie Midway was very realistic. I believed the director did a great job of using computer generated imagery, to capture the harrowing events depicted in the Movie. In the movies depiction of the attack on pearl harbor there was a lot of computer generated imagery used to simulate the explosions from the attack, despite this the films depiction was extremely realistic to the point where it left you with a sense of sadness and grief for the fallen crew members even 80 years after the attacks took place. Also the filmmakers got very deep and descriptive of the code breakers, and their methods of gaining the Japanese Navy’s intelligence. The depictions of the code breakers gave the viewers of the film including me a fuller and more realistic showing in the events of midway. This movie reflects greatly on CGI because it shows how realistic CGI can depict such harrowing events, and it shows how successful the CGI industry is getting.
I believe that the filmmakers did a great job, by including the battles of pearl harbour, and Doolittle’s attack over Japan, and the Solomon and Marshall island battles. By showing these events in the pacific it gave the viewers the full context of how important the battle of Midway was for the Americans in world War Two, and what would’ve happened if we lost. They showed that with the Japanese Army’s current position and if they won that battle they would have been able to advance into Alaska and the West coast, we would have lost the war and everything, the audience knew this because of the inclusion of the pacific battles.
I believe a strength of the movie was the CGI used in action scenes. They did a great job, and the explosions in pearl harbor and depictions with CGI left me moved. I also believe a strength of the film was how detailed it got. I have seen few movies about historical events that got as in depth as they did in Midway. The details of the movie such as the code breakers or the other battles gave the viewer a full in detailed experience. Overall the cast and crew did a great job of delivering a lot of action but also at the same time giving a great educational experience on the Battle of Midway.
1. Although the Japanees and the Americans have a long history of which was violent and unpredictable. There was an inconsistent portrayal of the Japanesse military because there were many different points of views on what happened. I does have everything to do with the assistance of the Chinesse in the movie, but also because of the different pieces of information they pulled from other people who have different opinions based on the side they support. During all of the attacks and battles that the Japanesse and Americans had, many people from both countries had lost many of their soldiers. I think the tribute to the Japanesse represents that the men that died in battle need to be honored. This also shows that America is trying to make amends with Japan, and that both countries now are realizing to learn from history and not let it repeat itself. The takeaway from this is to show that America and Japan are improving their ways of connection with each other and are trying to improve their relations.
3. Personally I think that all of the background information was necessary to set the plot for the movie. All of the previous battles leading up to the battle of midway helped set the scene, and gave it the intensity that it needed so that the viewers would understand the importance of that particular battle. For example, Pearl Harbor was a major event that caused the battle of midway, and it showed how Japan “had awakened a sleeping giant”, and how Japan was awaiting the attack on themselves. Pearl Harbor began the unexpectedness of the attacks, and the need for the navy to come together as one. Including the pilots, predictors, commanders, and more, and I think that all that was needed to show the battle of midway in the way that it needed to be represented.
4. There are many strengths and weaknesses throughout the film. A strength being how the movie showed the intensity of everyday when America and Japan were at battle. The movie did this by showing all the battles that are normally not talked about, this was a perfect way to lead up to Midway because you get points of view from all the sides and what each country did to get where they were in the war. Another strength is the personal attachments to the characters that the movie portrayed. For example, there were many pilots are characters that they drove deeper into their lives, and had the characters truly open up to the viewers. This kept the film interesting and gave it a greater aspect of humanity in the film, which was very needed in my opinion because it was based on wars, and battles, and there were always scene where someone lost their life or their family. I think that they did a really good job on showing everything that America did after Pearl Harbor, just because that Pearl Harbor normally gets all the attention, when there were many things that are just as important that we did in response that helped shaped us into the way we are today. Even though the movie and its important aspects are portrayed well, there are some things that I felt were weaknesses. For example, the film makers focused on both sides equality, but at the same time because it was so equal, it was hard for me to find a protagonist and antagonists. Originally I thought that America was the protagonist and that Japan was the antagonist, but after watching the movie my views shifted. Because of the way that the film came across to me, it seemed that the filmmakers weren’t on a certain side.
2. Something realistic in the movie was the attack on Pearl Harbor. The way it was portrayed was very realistic because it included a large amount of shock, panic, and pain that was caused as a result. Additionally, the movie did a great job showing the reality of how difficult it was to be involved with the war and also having a family. The CGI used throughout the film caused the attacks to feel more realistic, almost as if you were there while they were occurring. The CGI definitely reflects modern movie making because it helped viewers better understand the reality of the attacks. I think it would’ve been hard to accurately replicate the intensity of the battles without the CGI and digital effects.
3. I think it was important that they included the events leading up to Midway because they set up the context for the Battle of Midway. An example of this is the bombing of Pearl Harbor. This was an essential event to include in the movie because it helps give viewers background knowledge that is necessary for understanding the hatred American’s had towards the Japanese. Also, including other raids/battles such as the Solomon and Marshall Islands battles and Doolittle’s raid helps clarify the reason the U.S. joined the war. Without the scenes leading up to Midway, the people involved in the battle and the reason for it occurring would be misunderstood. Because these events were included, viewers are able to obtain a deeper understanding of what was going on during this time period.
4. One of the biggest strengths in the movie was how it showed both the American and Japanese sides of the conflict. This was very important because it helps people understand each side better. Incorporating both sides was a strength because it allows viewers to see the point of view from both countries, not just America. One of the weaknesses in the film was that it followed the story of a hero but did not really focus on the heroes that lost their life while fighting. Also, at the beginning, there were a lot of characters which made it hard to figure out who the movie was mainly focusing on. As the movie progressed, it became clear that it was mostly following Dick Best, but the amount of characters introduced early on made it a little bit confusing at first. Other than these weaknesses, I enjoyed the movie and also learned a lot about the time period in which it was filmed.
1. In my opinion, the portrayal wasn’t inconsistent, but rather a bland interpretation of the true army. The few scenes, especially the end of the movie during the scene where they show the fates of the characters, where the Chinese who helped Doolittle and his men escape were being killed for treason. The Japanese army was notorious for never giving up, and for using extreme measures just to win, i.e. Kamikaze attacks, harsh POW camps, etc. Not only does the film express its gratitude towards the fallen American Soldiers but pays its respects to fallen Japanese Soldiers. They do this because they both risked their lives, and in modern times, America and Japan have great relations and it is only right for them to be honored.
3. The movie should have stuck with the way it was structured. The beginning’s intensity brought out the action in the movie and set the pace for the rest of the movie. It was nice to see a re-enactment of Pearl Harbor, because it was the start of the war for America. But it was just enough of Pearl Harbor to not make the movie called Pearl Harbor. It’s called Midway because it revolves around the Battle of Midway, not Pearl Harbor. It was just in the beginning as an introduction, not as a main event. The battle of Midway itself was very drawn out, watering down the action to make for a more dialogue-based scene with less action than there should have been.
4. The CGI in the movie is phenomenal, considering every outdoor scene, especially on water, was mostly CGI. They didn’t take an actual carrier with hundreds of old planes and have the actors fly them, they used modern technology to make it look that way. One of the two main weaknesses were the scenes with Layton, because they were quieter, and dialogue based and didn’t show the work that got him in to the movie. Another weakness was the dead film, where there was weak, uninteresting dialogue and no action between the characters. I understand that there needs to be exposition, but the movie missed out on much bigger events.
1)I think there is an inconsistent portrayal of the Japanese military because there were different ‘phases’ of US and Japanese relations. In the beginning of the film, the movie showcases a time where the two countries seemed to be allies, or at least at peace. After World War II begins, that peace shifts when the Japanese bombed the US at Pearl Harbor, which drew Americans from a neutral state in the war to having a definite stance as enemies of Japan. Throughout the movie the Japanese military is then portrayed as a strong but cruel force. Although a Chinese production company helped produce Midway, I don’t think that had a huge impact on the portrayal of the Japanese military, even if the Chinese and Japanese had poor relations back then. By honoring the Japanese military I think that could signify that American and Japanese relations are improving. I think the producers wanted the audience to sympathize with both the Japanese and US. I believe they recognized that both countries suffered great losses and made sacrifices, despite their stances on the war. Both countries fought hard and put in a substantial amount of effort in an attempt to win.
2) Midway was a very realistic movie. This is because they didn’t create any new characters for plot development, and they showcased each individual’s distinct personalities throughout the film. Also, the movie did a good job of of having the characters dress up according to the time period, as well as including distinct accents. The included digital effects and CGIs helped to further make the movie realistic. I could tell the producers paid close attention to small details and size proportion.
3) I think the inclusion of the earlier scenes of the movie that showed the different battles of the war, definitely helped to build context and knowledge of the Midway battle for the audience. For example when the film shows how intelligence chief, Edwin Layton, fails to prevent the Pearl Harbor attack (he had the information but didn’t go through with it), explained the pressure he had to go through to make sure any information about where the Japanese were going was precise. Although the Midway battle was very important and the focus of the movie, I would have definitely liked to see more of what happened in the Doolittle raids over Japan, especially what happened after him and the other members he was flying with separated after jumping off the plane.
The visual and sound experience in the movie Midway gave the viewer a front-row seat to some of the more historic battles of World War II. The creators, through CGI and cutting edge sound effects, were able to recreate all the sights and sounds of Pearl Harbor and Midway to give the viewer a taste of what it was like to actually be there. The viewer is taken on a journey of sights and sounds that are unique and distinctive to those in real wartime situations. We get to sit in the cockpit of a fighter plane and take off from a carrier flying across the ocean to engage in a bombing run against Japanese carriers. We are on the deck of a U.S. carrier in Hawaii, when the Japanese enemy rain down bullets and bombs and we are forced to run for our lives and take cover any way we can. We are manning a battery of anti-aircraft guns, shooting down Kamikaze pilots on a carrier in the south pacific.
By transporting the viewer to the battlefield the trials, tribulations, and horrors of battle are experienced as they happen on land and sea in Midway. These realistic special effects afford the viewer a perspective of the war that is not often experienced. A perspective that challenges the notion of right and wrong, good and bad, winner and loser.
The retelling of Midway would have fallen short had the viewer not been afforded a retelling of the backstory and the ensuing battles that led up to Midway. By presenting the story of Pearl Harbor, Doolittles raid over Japan, and the Solomon and Marshall Islands battles in great detail, we begin to understand and appreciate the decision making behind the United States’ strategy to enter the war and ultimately win World War II. Taken as a whole, the war in the Pacific, had many subtle strategic decisions that ultimately turned the tide of the war for the Allies, and as viewers, we are able to connect the dots in this story because of the retelling of these battles. Additionally, the viewer develops strong connections to the characters throughout the course of these three to four separate battles. It is those connections that end up pulling the viewer in and not letting them go until the credit starts rolling.
If the creators had only focused on the battle of Midway and omitted the backstory of Pearl Harbor, I am not sure we would have developed as strong of a connection to the characters or the storyline. Throughout the course of the battles from Pearl Harbor to Midway, the viewer develops an emotional connection to the characters and a sense and appreciation for their battle decisions. As the viewer is taken on the roller coaster of emotions that is war, we can’t help but seriously challenge our preconceived perspectives of war and realize that the lines between Allie and Enemy are not as clear as we think.
The film Midway effectively transports the viewer to the battlefield with highly realistic visual and sound effects and offers the viewer a perspective of the U.S decision-makers of World War II that are infrequently seen in other movies or this era. Over the course of the movie, through the retelling of the battles at Pearl Harbor, Doolittles raids over Japan, the Solomon and Marshall Islands battle and ultimately the Midway battle, the viewer develops connections with the characters and the trials and tribulations that they face in and out of battle.
The film does fall a little short in its telling of the Japanese strategy and the motivations behind their strategies. A more balanced retelling of both the U.S. motivations and strategies in addition to those of the Japanese might have given the viewer a stronger perspective on what was really at stake for both the Allies and the Axis powers. In spite of the slightly unbalanced retelling of the Japanese, the movie succeeds in offering the viewer a realistic impression of some of the greatest battles of World War II and the reason for their inclusion in the annals of U.S history.
2). This movie is realistic in showing the story of the battle, the facts of the battle, and how people felt during the war. I felt that the movie was realistic in showing the story of the battle. The story felt realistic, because during the credits when it read over what really happened, it matched up well with what happened in the movie. The facts of the battle also can be backed up by that. The portrayal of people felt seemed realistic. It showed people on all spectrums of emotion, and how some stepped up to help take the fear away from others. I feel that this movie is definitely similar to modern movie making because of the CGI used heavily throughout the movie. I think that this helped the movie, but also made it worse.
3). I think that it was good that it focused on other aspects to help give context. I feel that the before scenes help give the audience a greater understanding. They help show what drove the Japanese to attack, and show their plans and how they believed they would outsmart us and defeat our weak navy. It also helped show the U.S side. How there were rumors of a Pearl Harbor attack but we never acted on them, how we got back at the Japanese by bombing them and tried to surprise them by attacking one of their bases. It also helped explain how we knew they would attack Midway. It showed how they used military band members who were not needed for anything, and put them to work cracking intercepted Japanese transmissions.
4). The strengths of the film are the portrayal of the stories, and some of the acting. I felt that the story was told in a good way that easily helped me understand it, and almost made you feel like you were in some of the action. The acting was also decent, but I think the casting was great. Many of the actors looked similar to the actual people who fought in the battle. Some weaknesses are the CGI and the inconsistent importance of characters. At some parts of the movie, the cgi looked very fake, and it was very obvious that its fake. I feel that it takes away from the scene and makes it look worse. The importance of some characters also felt off. For example, Bruno’s character seems very important in some scenes, like when he saves the ship and inspires some, but then his character is never really important again until he was killed.
2. The movie Midway had incredible graphics, and (as far as I know) amazing insight on the realities of being at war. I was more impressed with the look it gave viewers into the lives of the men than I was with the digital effects. I had never seen a movie about war, especially an essentially modern one involving the Navy. This may have lead my opinion of the film to be biased or simply uninformed, but from my point of view, the film was almost too real. The emotions portrayed gave the audience a look at what sacrifice and loyalty really mean. The CGI also played a large part in this as they made the horrific scenes happen. As technology advances, I feel that cinema focuses more on elements and landscape than anything else. Midway’s use of fire and water successfully draws visuals that help the crowd grow closer to the main characters as well as feel sympathetic to their battles.
3. I actually appreciated the fact that other scenes were implemented as well. They added context to the story. They also showed other aspects of the war that made the battle more significant. The brutality of the Japanese spoke volumes in how they treated the citizens, drowned Bruno, and carried out pearl harbor. I know that during a war people have to do what’s necessary to win, but there was an indescribable persistence in Japan’s executions. They had their hearts set on eliminating the U.S. from the pacific. In addition, this battle is considered the turning point of the war. It’s beneficial to everyone when other battles are shown because 1) we get to see what actually went right in midway compared to what was happening before 2) we get to see the worst-case scenario of the intelligence program getting things wrong. As stated before, this is my first war movie so I didn’t know how attacks were carried out, nor did I know the significance of the battle compared to others. This the importance was shown, not told.
4. I feel that a few strengths of the movie included the use of digital effects and using real people as the main characters. Not only was their character development shown with people like Dick Best, but it gave honor to real men and made the movie more historically accurate without it feeling like a documentary. I still learned a lot, and by sticking to real people the writers were forced to share real facts which made stories like Dolittle’s more heartbreaking. A weakness of the movie, in my opinion, was all of the smaller storylines. I’ll probably get some pushback on this because I haven’t studied the importance of these smaller stories, but personally, I was distracted by them. For example, the submarine scene. I was only disappointed by it. Another weakness I’ve seen argued was the game-like CGI, but my friends and I had no issue with it and we’re actually impressed with the graphics and story altogether.
2. The movie is realistic because it accurately showed the types of planes and ships used. The uniforms and dressing of the characters looked realistic. The accents helped represent some parts of America for me the most noticeable was the new york/east coast accents. The names of the characters and most of their personalities seemed realistic and not faked or over-exaggerated and the thoughts and concerns of each person helped the movie become more realistic. The fighting (mainly the ones involving bombs and planes) were an effect of modern-day CGI and the one scene were at pear harbor right were they got attacked the boy crossing the rope seemed to have a lot of CGI use. But overall the CGI and other digital moderations helped the movie as it is difficult to recreate a war without the use of it and I think the producers did a good job of balancing the scenes with it.
3. I think that they did the right thing showing the events pryer to midway. It helped bring context to the fight and the effects mentally and physically of the people who took part in the war. It also helped to show the mistakes made by both sides leading up to the battle of midway and the effects of the previous encounters and showed how they influenced the strategies used by both sides. I think just showing midway would prevent people who lacked knowledge of the events to understand(my self included) and it helped bring me a deeper understanding of the battle between the Japanese and the Americans.
4. I think some of the strengths in the film where the accuracy and showing both sides of the war and how each attack was planned out. I think they did a great job of showing the effects of the family’s. I think they could have added more backstories about the characters to create a more complex and shown how they got to where they were. But I understand that there were ALOT of characters in the film and it would take a lot of time to do so. Another weakness is I feel they rushed the ending after midway and could have shown more of the effect on America. Another strength would be showing the aftermath of the most important characters and giving a real picture of them and what awards they won.
1. My interpretation of the inconsistent portrayal of the Japanese military is that it represents that the characters are more than one-sided. From an American’s point of view, you could say that the Japanese were cruel and masochistic, which is to some extent true. From the perspective of a Japanese soldier, you’re just another cog in the machine. The Japanese, like our soldiers, had families and children and were just as human as us. The directors of Midway could be trying to show that there’s more than one side to every story and sometimes people don’t fight for just one team. What I took away from the movie was that it wasn’t dishonest with what it showed of the Japanese cruel treatment of the Chinese. All of the scenes that involved Chinese and Japanese relations were necessary and the movie, despite being produced by a Chinese company, wasn’t overly sympathetic or exaggerating. At the end of the movie, when both the Japanese and American soldiers were honored, I wouldn’t call that a sign of American and Japanese relations improving. Again, just like us, Japanese soldiers lost brothers, husbands, and sons and it would be unfair to not credit all the men who gave their lives for their countries, regardless of whether they were our enemies or not.
2. This movie is realistic because it gives insight into the true events of Midway, but it does do it in a very one-sided way. Being an American movie, it makes sense that Midway is more pro-American than pro-Japanese – For example, mistakes and cruelty from the American side of things are glossed over or taken out completely. I believe that the Japanese men, while given credit for giving their lives for the countries, were shown as the “bad” guys and the Americans were shown as being the “good” guys. CGI wise, the movie was extremely realistic. Each explosion and plane crash seemed to be happening in the same room as me. I don’t usually see action movies and I haven’t really gotten a chance to see what CGI can do nowadays and was blown away by how real everything looked. Midway showed off how far moviemakers have come along with CGI and other digital effects by packing in as many explosions in a two-hour period as possible.
3. By not just focusing on the battle of Midway and including several other battles leading up to Midway, there is more context given to the causes of Midway. As someone who doesn’t know anything about U.S. involvement in any wars, the context was much appreciated. Midway was an important win for the U.S., but it’s not like it was our only battle in World War II. It was extremely significant as it turned the war in our favor but was also the result of several other skirmishes. Other battles need to be mentioned in the movie to make sense of the battle of Midway. Not only does including other battles explain some of the reasons for Midway, it also gives credit to the thousands of American and Japanese men who died before Midway. By including other battles in the movie, it gives the necessary context for the movie to truly make sense, and to give credit to the hundreds of men who died for our country.
2). This movie was very realistic in the sense that we were viewing and learning about the experience of real-life characters during such a scary and unsure time in American history. The incorporation of each pilot’s families attached you to the story because you felt a longing feeling for them whenever a battle took place because you were hoping that character would survive to see their family again. The CGI effects in Midway gave another important realistic touch to the film because the injuries, the strikes upon ships, and the aftermath of fights looked like they took place current day and made you feel unsettling or sympathetic for what people in the battle had to go through. The best CGI scene of the film in my opinion was the one where the new recruit had to climb across the rope to get off the burning ship during the bombing of Pearl Harbor. I think it had the best effects because the destruction was very modern and you felt like you were there in person looking at it. Additionally, the man climbing the rope had just burned his hands on a hot cannon, making it very hard to climb the rope as his hands were wounded and open. This scene was very detailed when showing how the gruesome the burn was.
3). I think the additional battles and other context added to Midway was needed and very important because you grasped what life outside of fighting was like, and truly how unpredictable the time was. We learn that it was the worst American intelligence failure at the time, of course until 9/11, but we learn why and how it could have been prevented at the Japanese dinner when Edwin Layton was warned about how a conflict could start if Japan’s oil supply was cut off, but no one believed Layton. Other battles such as Pearl Harbor really set the scene for what Americans were fighting for, and how they were devastated by the destruction that took place, so I think the context needs to be kept in order to properly get the full effect of the movie.
4). The strengths of the film included again how realistic it was and how it made you feel. Other strengths were the displaying of the communications of both sides, so you knew what each leader was thinking and how they wanted to attack. It was cool to see how each country planned accordingly based off the known and unknown in comparison to the other. I think the weakness of the film was who they chose to die in the movie. By this I mean they producers of the movie chose people who to our knowledge were insignificant, so we didn’t feel as bad if for example Dick Best died. Every person who decided to give their life up for this fight in my opinion were memorable because of their bravery and remarkable dedication, so I feel like Midway should have given a deeper introduction to fighters who died, such as the pilot Bruno, so we feel more guilt and sorrow when they die.
I found this movie very realistic. It portrayed very realistic reactions to the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor. The people on the boats struggling to get to and man their battle stations, and the families and tenants near the coast scurrying and worrying about the soldiers on board. I also found it realistic to portray the many different types of soldiers. The ones that are strict,the ones that are to the book, the ones who are scared and weak for the line of work, the ones who are cocky and arrogant, and the ones who take risks. I thought that the CGI was incredible at a lot of moments, especially during the attack on Pearl Harbor. This represents modern movie making because it is used and executed much better that older movies that have CGI and green screens.
I think the mini battles and the battle that sparked Midway, Pearl Harbor, are essential events to the plot and story of the movie. Midway would never have occurred if it weren’t for the devastation at Pearl Harbor. The battles with Doolittle and the Soloman and Marshal Islands were small battles that needed to be fought to win the big war. I also think it was good to include Doolittle and the islands because they aren’t as well known events in our history like the attack on Pearl Harbor and the battle of Midway are known today.
One of the strengths of the film was not only showing the action of the battles, but also showing the people who helped lead the air forces to where their targets were coming in from and heading to, the unsung heroes. The movie was overall very engaging even outside of the scenes with the military. One weakness I saw in the film was the lack of development on the perspective of a family, waiting for their father and husband to return from the war. We saw Dick Best’s wife occasionally to encourage him and welcome him home, but otherwise we don’t get to see how she feels while her husband is off fighting in the war.
2) This movie was very realistic by the way they showed the battles in the war. The emotions the characters portrayed in the movie seemed like the emotions a real person in their situation would have felt. The time period shown in the movie was parallel to the actual time period in the 1940’s because of the technology used. In the movie citizens used radios to hear news and had a difficult time communicating from far distances. The gun firing and bombing looked very real and I could not even tell that it was from a movie. This is an example of the modern film making by using digital effects. Another example is the fire the movie displayed at Pearl Harbor in the beginning. Although this was digital effects being used, I could not help myself from believing the characters were being caught on fire because it was so realistic.
3) I think the movie should have focused more on the earlier scenes that helped set up the battle of Midway like the attack on Pearl Harbor and Doolittle’s raid over Japan. The attack on Pearl Harbor is the start of the United States involvement in the war and the reason why the movie even exists. Without Pearl Harbor their would not be a battle of Midway, so the attack on Pearl Harbor should be emphasised more for a better understanding of the war and the battles that follow. Doolittle’s raid over Japan was shown as a minor event and was forgotten about until the end when they showed what happened to all the characters. Doolittle’s raid infuriated the Japenese and was a good knowledge of the anger the Japenese man had towards the Americans. Although the movie is mainly about the battle of Midway, the movie could have shown the previous events more for background information and understanding of the battle and story.
4) The strengths of the movie are the graphics and the historical information shown in the movie. The movie did a good job of showing the historical facts and events that happened back in the 1940’s during World War II. The modern graphics used made the movie seem real and relevant. A weakness of the movie is it seemed repetitive with the fighting and eventually made me bored. I thought that the fighting was very similar in every battle with the planes shooting and bombing each other the same way each time. I liked the movie and the story shown because it had significant strengths and minor weaknesses.
During the movie, I definitely noticed the tone of the Japanese military had been portrayed as ultimately the enemy, who only had the motive of creating chaos and destruction because they wanted to and could. Especially during the scene where Japanese aircrafts were shooting down across the Philippines, and a native began saying that the people on the island were the targets they were meaning to hit. That scene made it seem as though the Japenese were killing and tormenting the country for the fun of it, or making sure that the country stayed terrified so Japan always have the upper hand against them. Seeing as the Japanese did invade and takeover China, then proceed to not apologize for the turmoil they caused years after, it would seem to be the probable cause of the Chinese producers to show the Japanese’s actions so cruelly in the film. Although, in the end when one of Japan’s carriers was sinking, hours after being hit with a bomb dropped by the bold Dick Best, they showed the honourable scene of the captain’s decision to go down with the ship. In earlier scenes an Japenese officer was shown as nervous and scared of the events as he was in the middle of the sea. That same man offered to stay with the captain as the ship was bombed by their own. The captain declined, saying all the young men should leave to safety. This scene showed the opposite of the scenes that portrayed pure violence, perhaps because they were on the losing side at this time. Though it showed the Japanrse valued life just as anybody else did, they weren’t just some supreme power that didn’t even care about its own, around these scenes of violence. I believe the America and Japan have a long way till they genuinely like each other, same goes with every country involved with America. America is made up of big concepts such as war, and we like to hold onto history, even if it pulls us back in the advanced areas that everyone else might be going forward in.
In the beginning scenes of the movie, it quickly leads to the event of Pearl Harbor. The CGI makes the audience feel the effects of the terror and utter disorder the soldiers felt. The scene where a young navy pilot puts his hands on the heated metal and seems to have burned many needed layers of skin off his palms only helps to show the war wounds many like him acquired during the mayhem. The movie showed every viewpoint, from the American government, to the pilots battles against Japan’s advanced aircrafts, to the hidden submarines, which was exciting to see since the airplanes usually steal the show.
I believe the shown events of Pearl Harbor, Doolittle’s raid and the Solomon and Marshall islands battles helped the movie overall. It showed the start of Japan’s aggression and continually showed Americans shock to the attacks. It fully showed the time period of Americans readiness for war although without the resources to be on the same playing field.
2.)The movie is realistic because it is historically accurate, as almost all of the characters were real people, and all of the battles are real. Although the CGI and special effects were necessary at times, there were some scenes throughout the movie where it became excessive and ended up distracting from the main point of the movie. This is a reflection of modern movie making because the overuse of CGIs is becoming a common occurrence in movies such as this. I guess some people might like it because it makes it more exciting and cool to watch, but I thought that the movie was plenty exciting without all of the CGIs and special effects.
3.) I think that it was a good thing that the movie wasn’t just focused on the battle of Midway, but also showed the attack on Pearl Harbor, Doolittle’s raid over Japan, and the Soloman and Marshall Islands battles. I liked that they showed all of the earlier scenes because I would have no idea what was going on if they weren’t to have those scenes to explain it. It also made me connect with the characters on a more personal level to understand why they made the decisions that they did, during the Battle of Midway. I developed a further understanding of who each character was, and could see why some of them were more bold and daring than others. It also would’ve been much less entertaining if they didn’t show the battles leading up to the battle of Midway because they would have to end up putting so much detail into the one battle to make it into a whole movie, that they would’ve ended up making it too confusing to even understand, let alone be interesting.
4.) The strengths of the film are that it was entertaining and I feel like, for the most part, it did a good job of not getting boring towards the end. I didn’t find myself restless to leave, which often happens to me. The actors and actresses did a great job of portraying emotion and getting viewers to sympathize with them. I was very sad to see several characters die. Additionally, they did a good job of showing both sides of the war. They started as portraying the Americans as the protagonists, but towards the end, Japan was shown as extremely honorable and admirable. There weren’t too many weaknesses because overall, I did enjoy the movie, but the excessive CGI was probably the biggest con of this movie. It could’ve been a really great movie if they were to focus less on the intense battle scenes. Sometimes they were very entertaining, but at other times they just kept going on and on and I found myself getting bored during those scenes. I also wish that they would have shown just a little bit more about what happened to them after the Battle of Midway. I was actually quite intrigued by the problems with Best’s lungs, and I wanted to see what he did for the rest of his life because he couldn’t fly.
2. This movie had aspects of using both reality as well as reflected many aspects of modern movie making. The movie directors did a very good job of trying to make the movie as real as possible while at the same time also trying to incorporate high quality special effects. It had really cool scenes where boats and planes were getting blown up and it created lots of suspense. This movie also incorporated a lot of cool cinematography with even simple things such as exit shots and shots with fighter planes going against explosions explosions.
3. I think that giving the other context earlier in the movie such as the attack of pearl harbor was necessary in telling what happened in the battle of midway. Without context and examples from earlier times I think that viewers would have had a much more difficult time figuring out what was going on throughout the battle of midway. In my opinion, the other context not only helped me see what led to the target of the ship midway, it also provided more context of the tension and fear being experienced by the fighters.
4. I think that there were many strengths throughout the film midway. For example, they did a good job of portraying an accurate depiction of the battle and how the battle played out between sides. It was also really cool to see how motivated people can be when they want to help our country from threats. Also the film used many cool special effects and cinematography angles which made the movie interesting and fun to watch. Although the movie had many cool things and benefits, the movie also had some weaknesses. For example, I feel the movie could have done a better job of having the characters show more emotion, I feel that the actors never really connected with the audience and it would have been much better if that was the case. I also think it might have been cool if more actors had actually been in a war before because I feel they could have done a better job of portraying war emotions.
The inconsistencies in the movie have to due with the perspective of how the Americans and the Chinese viewed the Japenese at the time of this war. It might have something to do with the Chinese production company and how they were taught about the war. When you learn about different parts of history usually it is done through the perspective of who is telling you. So if they were all taught about Midway through a Chinese perspective they were harassed and killed by the Japenese and could have influenced their production of the movie.
I think the other battles before Midway set up the movie towards Midway because it’s the final battle. It helps us (people who didn’t live through it) to understand the suspense of each battle was for Americans, Japenese and Chinese citizens at the time. Not knowing when the next attack was or where it would be and whether Layton’s predictions would be accurate. Without the knowledge of the battles from before we wouldn’t know the background of how the event at Midway occurred. It gives you a build-up of when the significance of the title will be revealed. The earlier attacks also helped because it gave you information on why they were attacking Midway. Which helped me while watching the movie because I didn’t understand what was going on at the beginning but the little bits of information helped.
A strength in this movie is the two perspectives of the American and Japenese navy. As well as a small part of seeing the treatment of the Chinese civilians in territory taken over by the Japenese. This shows you how they all dealt with the war and their reasonings for the battles. Another strength of Midway is they keep you guessing and interested throughout the movie. You never knew what was going to happen next and the other problems that would arise unless you researched it ahead of time. A weakness of the film was that is you didn’t know a little of the background information on the events it was hard to follow at first. However, as I watched it I better understood what was going on.
1.
There is an inconsistent portrayal with the Japanese military because the filmmakers made them seem like the “bad guys,” even though the only way they had a chance to win the war would be a surprise attack on Pearl Harbor. I don’t think this had anything to do with the Chinese production company that helped make this movie. The Japanese were looked at as being cruel and inhumane in this movie. I do not believe the Chinese production company would want them to be seen that way. During some scenes the Japanese were portrayed very harsh, including the scene where they found two Americans on a raft in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Two United States fighters were forced to evacuate their plane and were left stranded in the Pacific Ocean. Later the two fighters were spotted by a Japanese ship and picked up. The Japanese were interrogating them to locate the United States military ship locations. The two men would refuse to locate their military, so there men were safe. After the two men would not cooperate, the Japanese killed them in a grueling way by drowning them with an anchor.
3.
I believe the movie Midway should have focused mainly on the battle at Midway rather than the leadup to Midway. Midway was vital to concentrate on in the movie is because it showed the victory against the Japanese. Not only did it show how we won, but it also showed the strategy that was put in and the disadvantage with the short number of men and the lack of powerful artillery. Although I do think the lead up to Midway is just as important. The movie should have included more of Pearl Harbor and Solomon and Marshall Islands battles to show the causes of Midway and the reason why Midway occurred.
4.
The strengths of the film Midway were that it showed the reality of life back during World War ll. It expressed the life of a United States soldier, and taught the viewers on how we defeated the Japanese after a horrifying attack at Pearl Harbor. It also showed the commitment and dedication these soldiers had to the United States, to protect everyone living in the United States at the time. Although there were great strengths in the movie, there were also some weaknesses. A weakness was that the movie mainly focused on the life of a United States pilot in the war against the Japanese. One thing they could have improved on would be to show different perspectives of people during this war against the Japanese. Hence, the filmmaker did an outstanding job teaching the viewers about the war with the Japanese and Midway.
I think the inconsistency in the portrayal of the Japanese military during this movie was based on the division between allies and rivals back then and today. In the movie, we see that Japan attacked America and its military was not only stronger but also more aggressive. The film also briefly addressed that Japanese aggression wasn’t only directed towards the United States but also against China. I do think that having a Chinese production company fully financing the movie had a great impact on setting the topics of the movie. In my opinion, the movie was balanced in the way that the Chinese included a bad image of Japan’s aggression during WWII while the Americans showed a more positive representation of the Japanese. China and Japan are still on bad terms even today, and I think that the greatest reason for that is the genocide which the Japanese executed against the Chinese during World War 2. So far, in my mind, it hasn’t been publicly acknowledged that 6 million Chinese died due to the Japanese aggression between 1938 and 1945, which I think is an issue in for Chinese people and remembrance. However, today Japan is America’s most important ally in the Asia Pacific region. Therefore I believe that the movie tries to portray the Japanese much more favorable, which leads to an inconsistent picture of the Japanese military in the movie.
To understand Midway, you need to understand which events led to the Battle of Midway. Midway only happened because of the attack on Pearl Harbor. I think it was good that they movie showed all these events as most of the audience was not a witness of these events.
It was important to understand that Japan had more supplies, a much stronger navy, and they outnumbered the Americans by far. So therefore it was important to understand how good intelligence, the moment of surprise and luck helped the United States to turn “the tide” of events in favor of the U.S.
I felt the movie really grabbed one’s attention not only due to all the action but also because it was very personal. The great focus on personal relationships made the movie’s characters easy to relate to. However, its greatest strength is also its greatest weakness. Throughout the film, there were countless scenes addressing the connections between people. For example, between husband and family, the U.S. soldiers who were supported by the Chinese farmers, the U.S. chief of intelligence and the Chinese general and more. Yet there was no discussion of the political relations between America, China and Japan. As well as no referring to the facist Axis Powers Germany, Italy and Japan. There was no reasoning behind why the Japanese ever attacked Pearl Harbor or why it so suddenly surrendered.
In my opinion and while watching the movie, the producers and special effects crew and the whole movie crew made the movie look very realistic. The CGI was great, with all fire, planes shooting and all the ships moving around and having their own characteristics as well. But, other parts of the movie didn’t have such strong suits with the graphics and CGI. Some scenes with the actual characters and the ships sinking with the fire, it didn’t seem as believable at certain points just do the overlay and amount of fire. With modern movies now and all the CGI being used, it was very well made and really compared and up their with other movies and their CGI and I was very impressed with the movie as a whole and enjoyed it.
3)
As we know, the main point of the movie showed the entirety of the Battle of Midway with brief explanations of the Bombing of Pearl Harbor and the Americans consulting and at peace with the Japanease. The movie probably should of shown more events leading up to the Battle of Midway like more of the Bombing of Pearl Harbor and Doolittle’s Raid over Japan. With this, the audience and viewers that might not know much about the battle would have more context and background on how it started. But all in all, the movie pretty much covered everything about the Battle of MIdway along with other pieces before that and really made the movie clear and concise.
4)
The strengths of the film is really being able to depict all the main events of the Battle of Midway and what exactly happened. The film was also able to have very strong and special bonds with the main characters to the audience while they watched and could cause for emotional moments when an event of triumph happened when you weren’t expecting it or a character dying or getting injured during battle or being heroic. Main parts during the film had music in the back while intense moments happening, meaning how important and serious parts were. Some weaknesses of the film were not showing and going more in detail to all of the events of the Battle of Midway. The only subjects that were talked about were the brief showing of Japanese planes bombing American ships in Hawaii and America and Japan talking with each other and enjoying dinner together. If more events leading up to Midway were explained, the movie could have been even better.
This movie is realistic because it gave what seemed like a pretty accurate picture of what war was (and is) really like, and what also helped to show the reality behind it was how at the end of it, they gave some information about what happened later in life to all the men that fought in the battle of Midway. Believe it or not, I had actually never heard of the battle of Midway because it never really been talked about when I was learning about World War II or other information that would be necessary for the time, so this film was really helpful to watch because I learned a lot about this battle and how it was a turning point in the war. That being said, in terms of CGI and cinematography, it felt really basic and kind of cheap compared to what Hollywood can do nowadays. The CGI was pretty obvious during the bombing scenes, and it sort of took away from how important and pivotal those scenes were.
If the movie had only focused on the Battle of Midway (considering it is the title of the movie), I probably wouldn’t have been able to understand the importance of the battle. (I obviously knew background information about Japan bombing Pearl Harbor and causing it to motivate the United States to join the war, but I feel I still wouldn’t know enough.) However, the earlier scenes and battles before the Midway fight actually began were really helpful because it helped provide some more context to the war. Aside from Pearl Harbor, I didn’t know about the battles, so it was helpful to see behind the scenes and other rising actions that led this event to happen.
A strength of this movie was how it gave new (or not as popular) information about World War II or how war worked. When I learned about World War II, I had never learned about this battle so it was good to know so whenever I do happen to go over it in class or in conversation, I can be able to have new information to talk about. However, a weakness was just how cheap the special effects looked. Hollywood can do so much better in terms of CGI effects, and I feel like with this movie, it just looked a lot cheaper than what they’re capable of.
1)I think the inconsistent portrayal of the Japanese throughout the film was an attempt to show them as humans adversaries, as opposed to purely evil enemies who wanted nothing but to see the U.S suffer. However, as the movie does focus on wartime, it was inevitable to show the cruelty that came with the violence. Ultimately, I believe the film was trying to make a stronger statement about war not necessarily being such a black-and-white thing. For example, at the end of the film, the filmmakers dedicated the movie to both Japanese and American soldiers that fought in the Battle of Midway. That said, the film had to show that the Battle of Midway was a U.S victory, and what motivated the U.S to win. Therefore, the film had to show that American determination stemmed off their thirst for revenge after Japanese cruelties in Pearl Harbor. I do not believe that these inconsistencies were a result of the Chinese production company. The intended audience were Americans, and therefore the story was mostly shown through the American point of view. This caused a bias in the portrayal of the Japanese in the film (i.e showing American losses in Pearl Harbor). Furthermore, all the cruelties that the Japanese committed in the film were historically accurate, and were not accentuated. Even the cruelties against the Chinese shown served the purpose of informing the audience about where the US stood between Japan and China during the war, also adding nuance to the plot. Finally, the film also showed the Japanese losses too with the two generals on the sinking ship. In conclusion, all of the portrayals had some purpose in the film, and did not show significant Chinese bias.
2)I believe that the movie was very realistic in the sense that it stayed true to historical characters as well as not over glorifying or dehumanizing either the Japanese or the Americans. Additionally, it seemed as if all the events that took place during the movie could have happened during the actual Battle of Midway and the events leading up to it. I also appreciated the fact that the film did not spend too much time on sappy romance scenes, which also made the whole plot more believable. The movie had to be made using advanced CGI and digital effects in order to recreate the effect of the devastating explosions at Pearl Harbor and Midway. This proves that the movie is a reflection of modern movie making because through the latest technology, people have the capability to recreate historical developments (such as battles) safely, which they previously would not be able to do before.
3)Overall, the movie was strong in showing the Japanese as humans in some respects. It also did a good job setting up what kind of mentality the fighters had to have when facing the daunting prospect of the naval battle. The movie also did a good job showing what may have motivated the Americans to act the way they did during Midway. For example, Edwin Layton might have not been able to accurately predict the Japanese attack if he had not experienced the loss at Pearl Harbor. I also really liked the fact that the film did not try to sugarcoat, especially in regards to not adding extra romance scenes (which they could have easily done between Best and his wife). Finally, I appreciated the good acting done in the film. A weakness of the film in my opinion was the fact that some of the fighting scenes were too repetitive. While I do understand that war can sometimes be monotonous, for the sake of the movie, some scenes could have been cut. I also think that the CGI during the Pearl Harbor scenes especially did not look too realistic.
Overbreak not only did I a moving film during the Antebellum period and the power of an ex-slave, woman of color, I also saw an intense film about the Battle of Midway during World War ll. Throughout the film the Japenese opponents were portrayed inconsistently. I think that the film may have been produced this way because of the assistance of the Chinese film producers and the many different opinions of how the Japenense truly were during this time. I believed the filmmakers wanted to make the Jappense look honorable during some scenes, for example Admiral Yamaguchi, and in other scenes more like the enemies, killing many U.S opponents. Considering that the movie tried to show the Japenses as honorable in some scenes, I believe that could mean relations between the United States and Japan are becoming better. I feel this way because there was an undeniable cruel amount of racism being placed upon the Japenese during the time of World War ll by the U.S. So, now if people other than the Japenses race are seeing these people for their noble values, that would have to count as improvement. Overall, I believe this movie to be pretty realistic. With the attack on pearl harbor gave the movie a sense of realisticness because you see all the emotion, pain, and panic the people go through and we see everybody try to prepare for what will happen next after the traumatic event. The modern day use of CGI was very present in this film and I thought it was used well in most scenes to make the film more realistic. For example when the planes hit the U.S ship that looked very realistic. The only thing I think could have been better was the explosions because they had an element of fakeness to them and they were just too much in your face, that it took away from the real emotion and danger of the scene. The largest strength of the movie I recognized was, (even though it seemed to be a little inconsistent) was the views and actions of both the Navy of the United States and the Japenese. I felt this way because living in America, I feel like I only get the story of these traumatic events from the view of an American, but I felt like Midway showed both sides. I also liked the intensity of each scene and the feeling of not really knowing the danger that could come next. One of the weaknesses I noticed was because of the great intensity of the senses, sometimes the exaggerated CGI would take away from that. This made me dislike the film slightly more because the unrealistic element of some of the CGI made me distracted from the real emotion during the scene.
I think that the earlier scenes in the movie were necessary in showing the events leading up to the battle of Midway and showed critical mistakes and blunders made by the Japanese military that ultimately prevented them from carrying out the strategy they needed to win. Japan needed a quick strike to America to give them a victory and win the pacific. In order to do this, Japan needed to destroy the US Navy and the American victory at Midway proved that wouldn’t happen. Japan made a huge mistake at Pearl Harbor by not destroying the fuel reserves and with the American aircraft carriers already being out to sea. Pearl harbor was literally just Parked Battleships, Parked B-17s, and critical fuel reserves which the Japanese failed to destroy. If Japan had successfully destroyed the fuel reserves, we wouldn’t have been able to recover from Pearl Harbor as quickly as we did, and would’ve probably resulted in huge military losses in the Pacific. Doolittle’s raid on Tokyo was significant because it proved to the Japanese that they had awakened a military giant, and that the US would fight back with all the military force they had. It also showed the bravery of the American pilots because they were willing to crash land in China rather than not take revenge for Pearl Harbor. The Japanese navy then realized that Midway was their only shot at beating America. When that didn’t happen, it changed the tide of the war. This movie is realistic because the CGI showed (at Pearl Harbor for example), when the older sailor (who was also Dick Best’s friend), threw the rope to the younger boy who had severe burns to his hands when the USS Arizona was bombed. it showed his struggle to get over the water, which was on fire because of all the oil emitted by the battleships. I think that the point of the CGI in this specific scene was to show the intense peril that occurred for the people who were on the ships. That scene in particular stuck out to me the most, but I think the reason for modern movie making techniques in Midway is that soon there will be no surviving World War 2 veterans to tell the story, so I think the use of CGI represents the goal of the producers to make the movie as realistic as possible. I think the movie producers did an excellent job of adding realism. It made me feel like I was in the backseat of a corsair myself! I previously had little knowledge of the battle of Midway, and the movie did a really good job of explaining the battle in depth and showing the training that the pilots on the Enterprise went through before the battle. As far as weaknesses go, Midway had none in my opinion. The only thing I would have the directors improve on is going more in depth about the main characters’ lives after the war. But besides that, I don’t think anyone else could’ve done a better job in telling the story.
1. I think the reason for inconsistent portrayal of the Japanese was due to both Chinese and American people working on this project. The majority of the movie portrays the Japanese as very honorable and humane people. The warning from the Japanese at the beginning portrays them as very noble as well as the admirals who decide to go down with their vessel in an attempt to apologize for their intelligence error. These examples are what I suspect to have come from the American filmmakers. In turn, I also think that this is signifies that we have a better relationship with the Japanese. The other more antagonizes parts most likely come from the Chinese filmmakers in my opinion. Scenes like Nick Jonas’s character’s death, and the Chinese village attack. I don’t think that the Americans opposed the inclusion of said scenes, but it is clear that there was a difference of agenda in different scenes. I also feel that the end credit explaining the 6 million deaths felt like an afterthought. Six million is a lot of people to include so little time, although I recognize the movie is trying to focus on one event.
2. The movie came off as quite realistic to me because of the strategic use of CGI. While a lot of CGI is used, it is mostly used in beneficial ways. The use of CGI throughout the film is important to the battle and often didn’t come off as exaggeration. The CGI reflects the advancement in modern filmmaking and how movies like midway can become realistic. The realistic CGI combined with the emotional elements both used and demanded helped cover the idea that many of the scenes shot were dependent on special effects.
3. I believe it was very important that the filmmakers didn’t solely focus on the battle of Midway. Pearl Harbor gave the much needed historical context to the remainder of the movie. Without the Pearl Harbor scene, it would’ve made the American attack less justified, and it is possible the characters would have been villainized. Pearl Harbor also gave more depth to the American fighter in the sense that we witnessed them experience loss early on, and use it for motivation. The addition of Doolittle’s raid over Japan also helped to justify the later actions of the American fighters. It showed the cruelty of the Japanese and expanded the viewers’ overall knowledge of the war. Without knowing these things, it would’ve been much harder to grasp the motivations and general flows of the war, and the battle of midway could’ve been misunderstood.
I think there is an inconsistent portrayal of the Japanese Military because it shows the Japanese murdering thousands of Chinese people, in the movie because they helped American pilots escape. This aspect of the Japanese is accurate as they did invade China and kill thousands along the way. The Japanese are also portrayed as honorable, when the officers stay to go down with their ship, and don’t let the young soldier stay with them. I think that this is a little exaggerated. The Chinese Production Company probably wanted to portray the Japanese as cruel and ruthless, but the Americans wanted to honor the Japanese Military to signify improved Japanese-American relations since World War II.
The movie was mostly realistic with some exaggerated parts. The attack on Pearl Harbor was realistic in the sense that the Americans were taken completely by surprise. Some of the scenes were exaggerated because it’s a Hollywood Movie and they want to make it entertaining for the audience. The CGI and digital effects make the movie more realistic by replicating the destruction and the battle scenes would not be as convincing without special effects. Midway is an example of modern movie making because of the use of CGI to portray the battles more realistically.
It was important to show the events leading up to the Battle of Midway to set up the context of the movies. Midway was a result of Pearl Harbor and showing the events leading up to it help the audience understand why the victory at Midway was so important. If they only showed the Battle of Midway itself, I think the movie would of been a little boring, it would of only been action and explosions which would be boring after a little bit. If it only showed the fighting, it would of skipped over how and why America won. The code breaking was essential to figuring out where the Japanese planned to attack next. If the movie skipped over everything but the action battle parts, the audience would not be getting anything out of the movie except that we beat the Japanese and blew up some of their ships at Midway. It is important for movies to show the whole sequence of events.
2. The movie was realistic with the attacks on Pearl Harbor. The movie showed the faces of the citizens and the soldiers who were at the Harbor. The movie showed great detail in this scene, especially with the people on the island trying to find if their loved one survived or sadly perished. The realism in the movie with the CGI was very good as well. The plane fights seemed real, the shots and explosions looked as if they were truly real. One problem with the CGI in my opinion, was that they got a little carried away with it. They showed a lot of explosions and gunshots, some that needed to be there, but some of them were not necessary in the movie.
3. I belive that them showing the other battles and doolitlle’s bombings over Japan were very necessary. It showed what led to midway, and how much of an underdog America was at the time, which some people did not know. Many people thought we had more men and supplies than the Japenese, but truly they outnumbered us by a lot. The movies decision to show Pearl Harbor was a great idea as well. It not only showed us why we got involved in the war, but it also showed the greatest intelligence failure that America has ever had. The attack on Pearl Harbor not only showed the failure and the reason that we joined the war, but it also showed how many people we lost, and what supplies were destroyed. The supplies being destroyed was very important especially later on in the movie when the battle of midway happend and how little in numbers America was.
4. In my opinion, the strengths in the movie Midway was that they kept you involved the entire movie. The movie showed a lot of action especially during the fights. Even the conversations between soldiers and officers weren’t burning, but in fact very intriguing on why and how they successfully accomplished their tasks. Midway was very successful in the little details of war. For example, the constant involvement of Best’s family and even the dining/dancing scene. It shows us that war isn’t full on battle every single day, you get breaks at times, but you still have to fight even in the most gruesome moments.