Michael Munday4/25/2013

My assessment of the movie “Pearl Harbor” was positive overall. It was successful in

portraying the transient nature of soldiers during World War Two and the overall feel of the era

with fairly historically accurate accounts of music and culture from that time period. It was an

overwhelmingly depressing movie but brought to light some somber points that faced the United

States during that time period.

When the movie starts it shows the two main characters, Rafe and Danny, as children.

Danny’s father is a farmer and has a plane that he uses for crop dusting. The children are

fascinated by it and vow that they will be pilots. The scene takes a dramatic turn for the worse

when the boys climb into the plane and accidentally start it up and take it down the runway.

They manage to shut it off and climb out as Danny’s father comes after him and starts to beat

him. Rafe hits the father with a large board to knock him to the ground and calls him a “nasty

German.” It is revealed that Danny’s father fought in World War One and has a recollection of

what happened and what he saw, and he says that no one should ever go thought that again.

Danny’s dad is clearly scarred from the war and it is foreboding that he talks about how no one

should ever go through that.

The next scene is important in underscoring the main characters and their personality.

They are reckless and arrogant and the command is quick to overlook their actions because they

are the best they have. This scene also shows the state of the military during this time. There is

not much to do besides train. Rafe Volunteers to join a special group of British pilots while the

war is going on in Europe. So far America has stayed out of the war directly but has been

sending supplies over to help the British and French. America until the attack on Pearl Harbor

has been isolationist from the world and has not begun to be the dominating super power that we

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Michael Munday4/25/2013

know today. Danny tells him that he is transferring to Pearl Harbor after training. While on

reprieve much of the squad meet nurses and many end up together. Rafe meets a nurse named

Evelyn and falls for her. She tells him that she is transferring to Pearl Harbor too and he tells her

that he is going to fight in England. This upsets her but he promises to come back.

The scene following shows how bad the fighting is and how the British are not prepared

for this war especially their Royal Air Force. The pilots are stretched to their breaking point and

so are the mechanics and equipment. A fight between the Germans and British break out after a

bombing raid on Central London. Rafe’s plane is in a state of disrepair but he decides to fight

anyway. Rafe is caught in a battle and is shot down after shooting down many enemy planes and

is reported as Killed in Action.

Over the following months Danny and Evelyn form a bond as they mourn over Rafe’s

passing. They develop feeling for each other and the relationship quickly and unexpectedly

develops. Life on the island of Hawaii is fairly casual and life among the ships and on land is to

be expected during non-war times. There is a sub plot about a cook on the USS Arizona who

joined to fight but got stuck as a cook. He boxes on the ship’s deck against people from other

ships to make the Arizona proud. On the day of December 6th 1941 Rafe Comes back and

explains how he escapes and was rescued. He sees what has happened between Danny and

Evelyn and is deeply hurt that she would betray him. He is even more upset with Danny. They

get into a fist fight later at a local Bar and escape to avoid getting arrested by the Military Police.

Their feud is quickly interrupted the next morning when the Japanese attack unexpectedly

and without any warning. Before then, the US was in peace talks with Japan but they were

broken off that day. The scene shows the chaos and disarray that the US was in during the

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Michael Munday4/25/2013

attack. They did not take the threat of war seriously and was caught off guard. The White

House is in a state of panic as the intelligence office is rocked with news of the attack. It cuts

back to the action and the movie does a good job in showing the action as it would have

happened in real life. They pay special attention to the sinking of the Arizona because of the

importance to the sub plot. The Army Nurses do a great job caring for the injured even though

something of this scale has never been trained or prepared for. After the attack it shows the

wreckage and scale of people both dead and alive. There is a telegram that the Admiral receives

after the fighting that reads “Japanese Attack on Pearl Harbor Imminent.” The chain of

intelligence is slow and many people died to show that the United States is not ready for this war

either. After the fighting at Pearl Harbor, Rafe and Danny’s Squad is sent on a mission to Japan

to bomb major factories in Tokyo. They will use modified lightweight bombers flown off of

aircraft carriers to get to Japan. Before they leave Evelyn tells Rafe that she is pregnant and not

to tell Danny. They load up and head to sea. Their plans are cut short because of a run-in with

the Japanese Navy which causes them to launch their aircraft early to avoid early detection and

gain surprise. They are over 200 miles from their launch point. They are ordered to get rid of

anything extra and to take more fuel. The bombing raid was fairly successful even though there

are a few planes shot down by unexpected anti-aircraft weapons. The entire squadron lands in

Japanese occupied China. Danny’s plane is badly shot and it barely makes it to the ground next

to Rafe’s. They are surrounded by Japanese Infantry when Rafe makes a bold move to kill the

Japanese platoon by grabbing his squad’s pistols. Much of the Japanese are dead before they

realize what’s going on. Rafe runs out of ammo with one Japanese soldier left. Danny takes a

bullet for him as he reloads. Danny dies as the Chinese army comes into sight. Rafe marries

Evelyn and raises Danny’s son.

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Michael Munday4/25/2013

The movie was effective in highlighting the events of the day and how the US was not

ready for war. The Men and Women at Pearl Harbor fought bravely and many were awarded

medals for their bravery. The command did not take the threat of war seriously and paid the

ultimate price for their ignorance. This movie also shows the culture of soldiers during that time

and the transient nature that they endure. This movie is all about love interrupted, but in the end

everything turns out alright.

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