Pearl Harbor (Vista Series Director's Cut)

Rating:
Summary: Bruckheimer Bomb
Review: This is one extremely disappointing Turkey of a movie. It's a high-gloss, one-dimensional melding of "Saving Private Ryan," "Titanic," "Armageddon" and "Star Wars" for the aerial photography addicts. At least "..Ryan" had some emotional depth to character and plot-line after the horror of Normandy. The love story surrounding the attack on Pearl Harbor is flat, lame, predictable and just plain unemotional. Cuba Gooding Jr. generates more emotion in very limited screen time than in Ben Afleck's entire once and future acting career. But better actors probably would not have made that much of a difference. There is no story and there is not one ounce of insight or surprise during an almost insufferable three-plus hours. One question I have for producer Jerry Bruckheimer and director Michael Bay is why do we want to watch 45-minutes of U.S. soldiers and sailors dying horrible deaths? Because you now have new special effects tools to tell it from new and unusual angles? Is this entertainment? Is this 'history' supposed to be 'new' to the younger demographic expected to see this film? A lecture in U.S. History in high schools about this topic would be more provocative. Where's the added insight that would make this exercise worthwhile? And are movie-goers outside the U.S. interested in this? Save your money and donate it to a charity or a homeless person.

Rating:
Summary: Big Bomber
Review: I went to a private screening of "Pearl Harbor" with my school. I thought that it was very exciting and detailed. Although it was a remake of a movie made in the 1960's, this movie proved to be be quite enjoyable and exilerating.

Rating:
Summary: Saw the "2nd" Premiere here in Hawaii last night...
Review: This movie is worth seeing just for the 40 minutes of the attack on Pearl Harbor. The characters are likeable and the sappy love story works. Go see it!

Rating:
Summary: A Big Entertainment
Review: I recommend "Pearl Harbor" to people who enjoyed a movie like last year's "The Patriot." This is a fiction which is set against the backdrop of that terrible December day, when the Japanese attacked our navy at Pearl Harbor. There are aspects of the movie which are arch, to say the least (including one unintentionally hysterical line spoken by Kate Beckinsale's Evelyn), but as a popcorn movie, it really cannot be beat. The aerial sequences are smashing (literally) and the photography is warm and inclusive. Sound effects are especially excellent, visceral even. The bombing of the harbor is covered incredibly without being overdone or cheapened. If the movie drives some people to read more about the actual events depicted, it will be a service to history and to the memory of those who died. The highlight of my experience of the picture was a brief encounter in the Leow's theater lobby with a survivor of Pearl Harbor. My fondest hope for the film is that HE got something good out of it.

Rating:
Summary: not really a war film
Review: If you want to see Ben affleck get romantic, you'll love this movie. but if you want to understand the suffering and horror of war, forget it. This is a noisy, special-effects driven mess that is more interested in selling tickets to kids like me than showing true history. All kids are not dumb, but this movie is.

Rating:
Summary: Gotta see it on the big screen!
Review: I saw Pearl Harbor a few days ago at an early screenings and was blown away by it. The movie had the best trailer I've ever seen and the movie doesn't disappoint. The actual attack scenes are incredible. You know there had to be lots of CGI and special effects, but they're seamless and flawless. Not once does it ever look fake. I think teens, college students, adults, seniors and veterans are going to be very very happy with this flick. I was, and can't wait to go see it again. It MUST be seen on a big movie screen. Do NOT wait for it to be on video or DVD.

Rating:
Summary: Great Movie on DVD!
Review: The special effects is awesome, this is how it looked like if you're in the time period in Pearl Harbor. Great cast ensemble, and great musical score. This movie is ten times better than Titanic. Kate Beckinsale is not only beautiful but a superb actress. The extras include a documentary from the History Channel, and the making of the movie which is spellbinding. This movie is a MUST HAVE!

Rating:
Summary: Awesome deleted scenes
Review: This is the DVD to get, it has the deleted scenes of the love affair between Doolittle (played by Baldwin) and Beckinsale - the child Beckinsale carries was actually Doolittle's, not Josh Harnett's - in this restored, original version

Rating:
Summary: good but not THAT good
Review: This is a good movie but not great. It's way too long and the actors are not really that good. The special effects are amazing to look at but it gets boring after a while. Jennifer Garner had a very small role in the movie. Why didn't she got a bigger part is beyond me. This unrated version is not that special only has a lot more gore/violence. Why did I waste time and money on this one I really don't know. If you love violence movies buy this now if now avoid it at all costs.

Rating:
Summary: Bay and Bruckheimer learn to stop worrying and love the bomb
Review: You'd figure that a movie like "Pearl Harbor" would take its subject matter seriously and with some reverence, but we're dealing with producers Jerry Bruckheimer and Michael Bay, who are notorious for making loud, big-budget, empty-headed action flicks. Now, I like a popcorn flick as much as the next guy, but "Pearl Harbor" is as shallow as film making gets. To be sure, the 40 minute attack is as thrilling as a Six Flags ride, but there's no historical depth, originality, or dramatic thrust. The film borrows liberally from superior films like "Titanic" and "Saving Private Ryan," and the performances--from actors Affleck, Hartnett, and Gooding, Jr.--are wooden. Only the lovely Kate Beckinsale radiates some warmth and energy in her performance. As for the script, I was rolling my eyes every fifteen minutes: the screenplay leaves no stone unturned as it recites every war/romance cliche in the book. However, "Pearl Harbor" the DVD is well-presented: the picture is near flawless, and the 5.1 surround remix is the strongest I've heard. It doesn't surpass "Saving Private Ryan," but it comes close. So if you've seen the movie and you know you'll like it, then by all means grab it. Otherwise, you can find better ways to spend three hours of your time.