1941 {Extended Version} (Steven Spielberg, 1979) **1/2

Rating: 6/10 (24 January 2010)

To begin with, I consider Spielberg to be one of Hollywood's most overrated film-makers; thankfully, every so often, a dud effort such as this one comes along to remind us just how erratic his talent really is! For the record, I had watched the released 118-minute version on Italian TV as a kid but, checking out the longer "Director's Cut", I recalled precious little of it – so that I could not tell what constituted the new footage; frankly, I am glad I did not rush out to purchase the "Collector's Edition" DVD, since I was pretty much let down by the whole thing. The idea of treating the fear of further attacks on American soil after Pearl Harbor as a comedy was certainly sound – and typical of the freewheeling 1970s – yet I cannot help feeling that Spielberg was the wrong choice for it; the result (reliant on "Saturday Night Live"-type routines) is grossly self-indulgent that, in view of an overall lack of structure and heavy-handed approach, becomes increasingly tiresome and ultimately uninvolving! Given my harsh judgment so far, one might be forgiven in wondering why I rated it the way I did rather than opt for an even lesser evaluation; well, the eclectic all-star cast does lend the film some weight – with Dan Aykroyd, John Belushi (in one of his signature roles as a gung-ho but inept fighter pilot), Christopher Lee (speaking exclusively in German throughout!), Toshiro Mifune, Slim Pickens and Robert Stack (as an American General displaying child-like enthusiasm at a screening of Walt Disney's DUMBO [1941]!) coming off best; for the rest, we get references to (and three cast members from) Spielberg's own JAWS (1975) – including an inspired semi-recreation/spoof of that film's memorable opening sequence! Still, most of the youngsters (who, alas, take up much of the running-time) prove merely bland, while a number of would-be star cameos (notably Samuel Fuller's) fall resoundingly flat!; for what it is worth, I did not catch director John Landis' appearance, the ubiquitous Dick Miller is on hand, and Mickey Rourke makes his debut here too! One last thing: I wonder what American audiences – or, for that matter, the people who made it – think of the film nowadays in view of 9/11...