Rating: 
Summary: Fine film!!
Review: I have been a fan of this film for over 20 year. I am surprised to see that this movie has received so many negative reviews. When I want to watch a movie about the attack on WWII and or the Pearl Harbor attack and want to see accurate historical information I'll watch a movie like TORA! TORA! TORA! (TTT). If I want to be entertained I'll watch a movie like IN HARMS WAY (IHW). While I did like TTT and the fairly accurate telling of the events that led to the attack on Pearl Harbor as well as the attack itself it did not have character development. IHW used fictitious names and some fictitious locations but the story was based on real events. I really enjoyed the character development. I think John Wayne gave one of his best performances in this film. The only one that might have been better was his role as a dying gunslinger in The SHOOTIST. His character was not the standard head strong hero that takes on the odds and triumphs but rather one of an aging man who is trying to make the best decisions he can. Not all are the correct decision and he sustains some failures. He also is hurt in this film. I mean hurt to the point of hospitalization. Not something we see in many John Wayne films. Kirk Douglas gave a fine performance. It is hard to decide if you like him or if you don't. He is a man who has mastered his navy duties while at the same time unable to manage his personal emotions. The look in his eyes during the rape scene is one that will make you wonder if Kirk Douglas wasn't a little to comfortable with the role. Kind of like Kathy Bates in MISERY or Anthony Perkins in PSYCHO. When an actor can play a psycho so convincingly it makes me wonder if they might be a little psycho themselves. The effects are not the best but they are not the worst either. I think the black & white (b&w) works to the films advantage here. If filmed in color I think the scenes involving screen projections would have looked even more phony. Think of the Beach Party films made around this same time. So, if you want to be entertained and enjoy WWII movies this one will deliver. In my opinion it is better than MIDWAY and far more better than the horrible PEARL HARBOR (2001) film. Lastly, as far as the DVD is concerned it is okay. It has 3 trailers that are almost identical. The documentary is shallow. It does not really go behind the scenes and is more like an 8 minute trailer. The image and sound are okay and except for the widescreen format not that much better than the VHS version. I am a big fan of DVD's that have a commentary option when viewing the film. There are still enough of the actors alive today to make a commentary or at least a good documentary.
Rating:
Summary: A Great War Movie Despite Ho-Hum Special Effects
Review: Why do I like this movie so much? It's an good story with a good cast, an OK love story and ... special effects. I like "The Duke", Partricia Neal and Kirk Douglas, but so? The answer is that I think that "In Harm's Way" captures the spirit of the American Navy in World War II in a near perfect way; it shows flawed men and women trying to do their best under appalling conditions. It also shows the backstabbing and deceit that occasionally marked the rivalry between some commanders. Some parts drag a bit, but the overall effect, for me, is a movie that I have (and will) watch over and over. Despite its age, it spins a good yarn; the characters are believeable and interesting. Wayne has delivered many fine performances (think "The Quiet Man", "The Searchers" and John Ford's cavalry trilogy) and his portrayal of Admiral Rockwell Torrey is one of them. In his committment to the Navy, his growing love for Nurse Maggir Haynes, and his conflict with his son, Wayne is at his top form. Neal, in her post stroke first appearance is equally good. OK, the use of poor models to represent naval ships is off-putting, but it's the characters and the story that captures the viewer. The DVD is all that could be asked for short of a re-make of the film. It remains one of my favorites.
Rating:
Summary: In Harm's Way......Fiction and True Life
Review: The cast of this movie is exceptional and though the events are fictional, the story line is right out of history. John Wayne, Kirk Douglas and all the others in the cast are perfect for the period, they actually live the years of WWII. A story of real human emotions and courage during a time of great pain and suffering. This is John Wayne at his best and Kirk Douglas' supporting role character is just out of this world. I admit to being patriotic and a John Wayne fan, but this is one to own, if you like drama.
Rating: 
Summary: A Story of Courage In Men and Women
Review: Yes, this is a war movie, and it covers some of the critical battles of the early days of America's entry into WWII. However, it is more about the people involved, and their struggles to stand up to the circumstances that life presented them with, than the battles themselves. We can not necessarily control the circumstances in our lives, but we can control how we respond to them. Some may have courage under fire, while those same people lack the courage to deal with a bad marriage. In this film both the emotional lives and the military lives of the individuals we see are examined. Do some of us run from emotional danger? Do some of us run from military danger? Do some of us run from ourselves? Under which circumstances will we have the courage to place ourselves in harm's way? Is there a time when running away is no longer an option?
Rating:
Summary: Unreal Realism... This one, you SHOULD own.
Review: The islands are imaginary, the battles ficticious, but the story is right on. Forget special effects and violence for ratings sake, this film strikes a tone still applicable today. The politics seem to be right out of modern situations. (but as much as we might like to, we won't slap an ex-congressman to get his political rear-end out of the way). Modern Air Force Officer training uses a scene from this movie as an ethical training situation... You only have 10 assigned airplanes, but you need 15, and you will only be issued replacements from the reserves in the case of a mechanical breakdown. What can you do? Kirk Douglas has one solution, and I know of one real-life guy who broke up with his Air Force girlfriend after wrangling over this very scenerio. Happy ending? You decide. People die, in fact, just about everyone. War, sex, death, love ,suicide, rape... I still felt good when the final waves crashed onto the beach. There is some well done WWII ship footage, for those into heavy iron. But also, keep in mind that this movie was made before computer effects... in fact, even before computers.
Rating: 
Summary: The Last Blast of the Big Gun Navy
Review: As an avid reader of history, I classify this movie as a guilty pleasure. It grabs your emotions and takes them for a heck of a ride. It has a strong cast, a great multi-layered soap opera plot, exciting action scenes and fabulous black and white cinematography. It is also a total joke as history. Watching this movie you would never realize that the U.S. and Japanese navies fought their major battles with carrier based airplanes. So if you like battleships and bombast, this movie is for you.
Rating:
Summary: The movie that grows on you.
Review: The movie is very interesting, and the more I watch it the better I like it. I enjoy John Wayne movies a lot. This one is definitely one for you collection. It is longer than his normal movies, but covers a lot of what went on during the war in the pacific.
Rating:
Summary: Wayne Runs a Tight Ship
Review: In contrast to the sappy, inmature "Pearl Harbor" film released in 2001, "In Harms Way" presents love triangles between Wayne and O'Neal, and others with dignity and realism. While "Pearl" does a better job on effects, the "older" stars (Wayne, O'Neal, Douglas and others) in this film give riveting, no-nonsense performances. In fact, they fit comfortably in that "greatest generation" characterization: the characters didn't mince words, worry about feelings, but delivered their lines with confidence and meaning. One of my favorite Wayne movies that I watch over and over again. I good war film to show your kids before they see "Pearl Harbor."
Rating:
Summary: In Harm's Way
Review: This movie captures in a small way the reality of the war in the pacific, without overindulging in either the actual events or the actual homefront heartbreak. The characters are well developed and the drama is strong. Being filmed in black and white also adds to the atmosphere, and helps lend an air of authenticity to this complete fiction, without taking away any of the feel of the era. This is a clasic ww2 story.
Rating:
Summary: Wayne and Douglass makes for a gargantuan epic!
Review: Premlingers stupendous epic "In Harms Way" begins with the amazing recreated attack on Pearl Harbor and ends a couple of years later with America's return to the South Pacific. John Wayne and Kirk Douglas are amazing in their portrayals and must be seen as two of the best actors of all time. Wayne is so full of himself that one is certain that he was a military general in a previous and Douglas is also very believeable as the boozing soldier. Highly Recommende.
| 
