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PEARL
HARBOR
PEARL
HARBOR DVD FEATURES
Region Reviewed: Region
2
Number of Discs: 2
Sound:
Dolby Digital 5.1
Picture: 2.35:1
Anamorphic
Special
Features: Journey
To The Screen - The Making Of Pearl Harbor, Pearl Harbor
- The Japanese Perspective, Faith Hill music video (There
You'll Be), Theatrical Trailer, Scene Selection, Animated
menu.
Pearl
Harbour Plot:
Based around the events of December 7th 1941 when Japanese
invaded Pearl Harbor. The film focusses on two young American
pilots, Rafe McCauley (Ben Affleck) and Danny Walker (Josh
Harnett) who both fall for same girl, Evelyn (Kate Beckinsale).
Pearl
Harbor Review:
I went to see Pearl Harbor at the cinema back when it was
released back on May 30th this year. It was the first event
movie of the year and hype was building up from weeks and
weeks before. I was in Leicester Square the night before where
the film had its UK premiere, so you could say that I was
looking forward to seeing the movie more than most people
especially after this imense build up and months and months
of writing about the hype online. A film like this is meant
to be seen in a packed cinema right? Lights down, Dolby Digital
blaring from each of the six channels and a fistful of popcorn
to boot. Right? Right, but this is lunchtime and there are
only a few people in the auditorium (even though this is the
cinemas first screening) and my popcorns stale (leftover from
yesterday), but at least the Dolby Digital will recreate some
atmosphere and enhance this Bruckheimer movie extravagansa
experience. It did, to a certain extent, until the final reel
which jammed in the projector and stopped the movie at one
of the movies most important moments. Damn! The cinema's management
apologised and we were whisked into screen 2, where the film
was also being screened to an equally small amount of people,
but was running about 20 minutes behind. In other words we
had to sit through some of the stuff we had already just seen,
which was a pain in the arse as it completely ruined the rest
of the film that we had not yet seen. The credits rolled,
the film ended and we left (well, me anyway) dissapointed.
The Pearl Harbor experience first time round sucked. Now 8
months later, the DVD sits before me.
This time around, I am sat in my own home, alone in a darkened
room with my own ('fresh') microwave popcorn, my own Dolby
Digital setup turned up to the max and my own TV positioned
the right distance before me. PLAY. FAST FORWARD three(ish)
hours and I have seen the film in its entirety at last. And
its okay. Just okay. The film is overlong, but the 25 minute
attack sequence an hour and a half in is the films redeeming
feature. Emotionally and dramatically it's not a patch on
Private Ryan's opening sequence as we're treated to a more
'family' friendly war movie. This film may have benefitted
from a higher rating (which we are promised next year) to
capture and somehow recreate just how much of an American
tragedy this was, and to hit home to audiences, just as 'Ryan'
did. The whole this is just too cartoony and as cliched as
it may sound all just 'too Hollywood'. In the hands of a different
director and production team, including screenwriter Randall
Wallace who dissapoints with his follow up to Braveheart,
this could have been a totally different film. The central
love story is totally unbelievable and the performances by
the actors involved are all just average. Michael Bay was
probably the wrong director to do Pearl Harbor as this is
just the same as his previous movies, most of all the awful
Armageddon and considering the delicate subject matter of
this (not forgetting a lot of the surviviors are still alive,
and even helped on the production), it should have been handled
a little more delicately. I would have hired Spielberg. Imagine
that, Jerry Bruckheimer producing a Spielberg movie. Wouldn't
happen.
There are positive aspects too. The attack sequence is both
spectacular and is edge of the seat stuff, but still doesn't
capture the horror. Bay shows signs of hope with the footage
shot by the cameraman during the attack (black and white),
the 'money shot' of the bomb that falls from one of the Zero's
to the deck of one of the battleships is excellent and Jon
Voight's Roosevelt is well acted.
To wrap it up, Pearl Harbor is an event movie that should
have been more personal. It's all big bangs, God bless America
and too much emphasis has been put on the central romance
plot and not enough on what realistically what happened on
that dreadful day.
Pearl Harbor Disc Review: The
disc is a little bit of a let down too. My wish list for this
would include at least a commentary from Michael Bay, but
preferably with Bruckheimer, Randall Wallace and the always
entertaining ben Affleck too. No sign of any commentary on
the disc at all. We have a lengthy documentary ' Jouney To
The Screen - The Making Of Pearl Harbor' which is one of the
better ones that I have seen. It includes interviews with
Bay and Bruckheimer, some of the cast and also some of the
survivors of Pearl Harbor. The trailer is on the disc, as
too is a music video by Faith Hill and another documentary
'The Japanese Perspective'. The menus are animated and we
have the standard scene selections too. The extra features
are okay, but certainly not what I had expected from a film
as huge as this. We're promised a three disc edition and a
version with an 'R' rated cut at a later date though.
The picture quality is excellent in this 2.35:1 anamorphic
transfer, but it's the sound that excells the most and easily
the best mix i've heard in a while. The attack sequence features
great bangs and dynamic range that echoes in the rear speakers,
plus there's the sound of gunfire from all around the channels
that put you into the thick of the action.