Rating: 
Summary: movie hits home
Review: On 7 December, 1941 my grandfather was caught in the middle of the Japanese airraid on Wheeler Army Airfield on the Island of Oahu, a few miles from Pearl Harbor. His war stories included many harrowing expirences but that day was never discussed. Now that he is gone and his memories with him I gave little thought to the attack except as a historical family footnote. Then I saw this movie. Whether it was dull or facinating is irrelevant to me as it provided a window into the past and I saw, for the first time, that day much as my grandfather saw it. It gave to me an understanding not just of what he went through but what American soldiers, sailors, airmen, and marines suffered through for four years. This movie is not only a masterpiece of historical film but a link to our nation's past that can never be broken for the sake of those who gave their lives for our freedom and those who lived the rest of their lives wearing the scars of that war - both physically and emotionally.
Rating: 
Summary: Good history lesson
Review: This is really a dramatised documentary and very well done. What it lacks though is that it does not emphasise the human loss enough. I don't know how many Americans were killed but it was a lot. For many people, December 7th 1941 meant the end of their lives and that is what we should remember so as to avoid more wars in future
Rating: 
Summary: Faithful, spectacular, and unbias but dull.
Review: Tora! Tora! Tora! unfortunately illustrates that when movie makers stay true to the facts of an Historical event, they produce a rather dull movie. Film that are liberal with the facts like "Brave Heart", althougth deserving of criticism for that, do undeniably make for compelling viewing. The film goes to great lengths to tell the story from both American and Japanese view points and the courage that was displayed. All very well, but the result doesn't make for exicting or even interesting viewing. It also fails to explain the effects of the situation on both sides. That said, the attack itself is worth waiting for; it is both exicting and spectacular and still packs a powerful punch.
Rating:
Summary: Tora! Tora! Tora! Rates as a top notch WWII Film
Review: Tora Tora Tora is one of the best films on the Pacific War that I have seen. I have seen other good films but none that have covered the bombing of Pearl Harbor from both American and Japanese sides and with careful attention to detail. A lot of money was spent on this film, but it was not wasted because it takes you through the entire planning and political phase as well as the final bombing of Pearl. This movie is definetly better than Midway. Although Midway had a interesting story the Sinking of the Japanese fleet carriers it lacked in accuracy in relation to warplanes and it's budget for special effects must have been not any because it used old war footage to try to substitute for action. By the way about Midway the paint schemes on those Japanese planes as interesting as they were are historicaly inacurate. Tora! Tora! Tora! Pearl told as it actually happened. One of my critics of Tora Tora Tora would be about the Japanese delgates as embarrased as they must have been. I think it was overdone with the weakness of there characters and the whole thing just stunk of old stereotypes about people of asian descent. Other than that thumbs up
Rating: 
Summary: TORA! TORA! TORA! is...
Review: BORING! BORING! BORING! And hopelessly jingoistic as well; you best bet might be to join in about two-thirds of the way through this mess! At least then you see carnage instead of tote boards; heroes instead of cowards, soilders instead of senators. A let-down that was hyped to rival PATTON.
Rating:
Summary: Great stuff for those who love this kind of thing
Review: This movie was a critical and financial flop when it was originally released, but I loved it then and loved it now. It tries to resolve the problem of making a drama out of something when everyone knows what the result will be--And does as well as could be expected--I find myself still rooting for the officer trying to alert his superiors to the possibility of an attack. The real star is the amazing model work--It's incredible to realize that these special effects are done without computers! If you've read this far, I predict you will enjoy the movie.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent, documentary-style movie
Review: Tora! Tora! Tora! is by far one of my favorite military history movies. While I am not a historian, I believe the movie is a rather accurate account of the events leading up to and resulting in Pearl Harbor, based on other readings/viewings. The actors even look like the actual people they are portraying!
Rating:
Summary: Best movie ever made!
Review: Even today, some 30 years after this film was made, it is fabulous, and this letterbox edition has been redone with THX giving superb audio. I still wonder how they ever recreated this movie before computers... superb, moving, and very fair to both sides. I am not a fan of war, but this portrays a very important historical event.
Rating:
Summary: Recreation of Dec. 7 attack, told by both sides. Grade: A
Review: One of the most expensive films ever made ($25 mil in 1970 dollars), Tora, Tora, Tora crisply tells of the dawn attack on Pearl Harbor by the Japanese. Both sides handle their own filming, with Richard Fleischer directing the US segments and Kinji Fukasaku and Toshio Masuda directing the Japanese (Akira Kurosawa was originally slated for this job). The first half is a tense build up showing the Japanese resolve and the lax standards of the US Army and Navy stationed at Pearl. The second half features one of the most awesome battle creations ever committed to film with Rising Sun dive bombers and fighters devastating airfields and Battleship Row (a true, white-knuckle spectacle). The destruction of the Pearl base seems so complete that it's sobering to see the closing scenes where a few Japanese commanders are not so sure that they did a thorough enough job to stay on top of the US militarily. Great, if sparse Jerry Goldsmith score (suite available on Uni/Varese Sarabande; ASIN: B00000150U); tight, often black writing by Larry Forrester, Ryuzo Kikushima, Hideo Oguni; special effects by L. B. Abbott and A.D. Flowers (the film won deserved Oscars for Visual Effects); cast includes an impressive list of character actors, including Jason Robards who was actually at Pearl Harbor on December 7th. END
Rating:
Summary: How Does it Compare with "Pearl Harbor?"
Review: If you were not entirely pleased with the recent "Pearl Harbor," then "Tora Tora Tora" might be more your style. The title is taken from the code issued by the Japanese Air Task Force Commander when he saw while approaching Pearl Harbor that they had achieved complete surprise against the Americans.Very good movie of epic proportions, featuring a large assembly of vintage aircraft, and the production filmed on location at Oahu. There's no love story, the operation itself and historic events leading to the attack are the main features. Most interesting is the movie comprised of two productions, a collaboration between Americans and Japanese to achieve an accurate depiction of the event that brought America into World War II. Almost a documentry in style. The portrayal of Admiral Yamamoto's profound remark about awakening a "Sleeping Giant" at the end of the movie has a much higher impact on viewers when compared to the contemporary "Pearl Harbor." Fans of naval history will enjoy this one. This version does not follow-up with Colonel Doolittle's raid on Tokyo, but you can try "30 Seconds Over Tokyo" with Spencer Tracy to see another depiction of that operation.
|
