superb depiction

Rating: 9/10 (14 November 2019)

Let me start by saying that whilst there are a few rather cringey "Hollywood" moments with the dialogue and one or two action scenes, overall it will go down as an excellent and largely accurate depiction of the battle. But we don't only see the ferocity of Midway itself, we're given the build-up to the War in the Pacific plus depictions of the Pearl Harbor attack and the follow up engagements between the Japanese and American forces. This was important in setting the stage for the main event as it were.
Turning to the special effects briefly. The CGI is absolutely mind blowing, as would be expected from an Emmerich film of this nature. I could not get over the attention to detail of the ships, aircraft, firepower and landscapes rendered. Simply magnificent. To my mind there's never been a more, dare I say it, "beautiful" depiction of war in the Pacific. It really raises the bar to a height I dont think will be surpassed for a long time in movies of this genre.
Another very important aspect of war films for me is how "the enemy" are portrayed and to be fair the Japanese aren't painted in simple-minded, propagandistic terms. They are mostly shown as the brave and thinking airmen and naval personnel we know they were. At one point for example Yamamoto mentions how the oil embargo on Japan is leaving the country with no option BUT war. Again this is important in a historical context, especially as so many people these days are ignorant of the past (not saying i'm an expert on it of course!). We know that Japanese forces did indeed commit many atrocities, against Allied troops but more especially against the Chinese population and other Asian civilians under their occupation, so it's good that these are highlighted at various points in the film too.