Tora! Tora! Tora! (1970)

In August 1939, tensions rise in the relationship between Japan and the United States which is accelerated when Japan allies itself with Germany and Italy. As the signs of war between the two countries advances, the Japanese plan an attack on the American fleet in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. Based on the non fiction books THE BROKEN SEAL by Ladislas Farago and TORA! TORA! TORA! by Gordon Prange and directed by Richard Fleischer (the American portion), Toshio Masuda and Kinji Fukasaku (the Japanese portion). Critically panned on its initial release, the film holds up quite well. The film eliminates any personal stories, there's no romance in the film, no big stars. It's an ensemble film told in a semi documentary fashion and this all works to the movie's advantage. The first half of the film focuses on the Japanese planning the attack and the U.S. overlooking the warning signs. After the intermission, the film focuses on the attack on Pearl Harbor. Even though we know what happened, it plays like a tense "race against time" thriller. The screenplay is adequate, no more but this isn't the kind of film that depends on its dialogue. It's the three directors that form the film's structural skeleton and propel the narrative forward (Jerry Goldsmith's score helps). I did find the "humor" inserted in the Pearl Harbor attack not only lame but offensive. The massive cast includes Jason Robards, Joseph Cotten, Martin Balsam, James Whitmore, E.G. Marshall, Wesley Addy, Edward Andrews, Keith Andes, Richard Anderson, Leora Dana, Jeff Donnell, George Macready, Leon Ames, Neville Brand, June Dayton and on the Japanese side: So Yamamura, Tatsuya Mihashi, Eijiro Tono and Susumu Fujita.