More of this Feature • Page 1 - Review • Gallery of Publicity Stills • Photos from the Premiere • "Pearl Harbor" DVD Review    Related Resources • Ben Affleck Websites • Movie and Fansites Featuring Josh Hartnett • Kate Beckinsale on the Internet • Romantic Movie Reviews • Top Picks-Romantic Movies Released on DVD in 2001

The film alternates between gritty realism and moments of levity. Real historical figures Col. James H. Doolittle (Alec Baldwin) and Doris "Dorie" Miller (Cuba Gooding, Jr. in a minor role that should have been given more screen time) are sprinkled throughout the film, adding a touch of authenticity to the daring-do of the main fictional characters portrayed by Affleck and Hartnett. Baldwin and Gooding both steal scenes whenever their characters are involved in the action. The romance is one that's been done before, but it's affective, entertaining, and beautiful nonetheless. The battle scenes are impressive and overwhelming in their ability to seemingly transport you back in time. I'd recommend this to anyone who isn't looking for an exact retelling of history but is interested in a gripping fictional account of the months leading up to the start of America's involvement in World War II.

On a personal note, I watched the battle scenes in "Pearl Harbor" with trepidation and awe. My father was stationed aboard the USS San Francisco in dry-dock at Pearl Harbor on that day that will live in infamy. His ship wasn't battle-ready and as such, he and his shipmates couldn't do much to help fight off the attack. I was never much interested in his military background being that I was born long after he'd moved on to teaching at one of our local navy bases. He never spoke much about Pearl Harbor, only to say that it was a devastating massacre and something he'd never shake from the forefront of his memories. He was reading the comics in the newspaper that day, and up until the day he passed away, he never read the comics again. The actual attack scenes in the film made my heart race and raised goose bumps along my spine. Through the magic of film I was able to relive that time, while sitting in a darkened theatre alongside the memory of my dad. If for no other reason than that, I'd see this film again and again.

Overall Grade: B

Interested in purchasing "Pearl Harbor?"


Directed By: Michael Bay
Produced By: Jerry Bruckheimer
Written By: Randall Wallace
Costume Designer: Michael Kaplan
Cinematographer: John Schwartzman
Original Music By: Hans Zimmer
Casting: Bonnie Timmermann
Original Music By: Hans Zimmer
Production Design: Nigel Phelps
Set Decoration: Jennifer Williams
Special Effects Supervisor: John Frazier

Rafe McCawley - Ben Affleck
Danny Walker - Josh Hartnett
Evelyn Johnson - Kate Beckinsale
Red - Ewen Bremner
Betty - James King
Col. Doolittle - Alec Baldwin
Barbara - Catherine Kellnert
Billy - William Lee Scott
Anthony - Greg Zola
Sandra - Jennifer Garner
Theo - Michael Shannon
Col. Doolittle - Alec Baldwin
Pres. Roosevelt - Jon Voight
Dorie Miller - Cuba Gooding Jr.
Admiral Yamamoto - Mako
Earl - Tom Sizemore
George - Howard Mungo
Captain Thurman - Dan Aykroyd
Joe - Matthew Davis
Nishikura - John Fujioka
Genda - Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa
Admiral Kimmel - Colm Feore

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