This is a terrible movie

Rating: 1/10 (21 July 2001)

I went to see this movie with low overall expectations, knowing that it was produced by Jerry Bruckheimer who I knew was somehow connected to "Armageddon", which I thought was an absolutely horrendous American patriotic bullcrap movie. I was hoping it would be pretty empty and bearable leaving me free to ignore it and enjoy the action scenes, which looked pretty impressive in the trailer.
What I saw though, increased my distrust for any film connected to Hollywood more than after seeing "Armageddon" or "The Patriot". The glaringly formulaic scripting (and acting) of the love story left me gasping in amazement at how unpicky (and dare I say unintelligent) Americans have become when watching movies, knowing how much it's making, and especially after reading the numerous "This is the best, most touching movie I've ever seen!" reviews on this site. I simply cannot grasp how anyone could be touched by the predictable clichés deployed to give the film an "epic", deep outfit. It was just so silly, it reminded me of the stories you expect from cheap paperback novels and daytime tv soaps. I could have bared it if only a small percentage, say less than 75% of the film, were pure love-story. After all it's hollywood, and it's a blockbuster. But what shocked and angered me was how seriously it took itself, as if the director and scriptwriters really felt they were creating art. There were no unpredictable twists, the acting was cold with no chemistry between the actors, and music is employed ALL THE TIME in an attempt to control our emotions. Real movies don't need constant orchestral mood-changing music, they manage to convey feelings to the audience by using picture and dialogue.
Now for the other parts of the movie. I found the Pearl Harbor bombing sequence pretty impressive as I am easily impressed by special effects and cool sound in movies. But again I cannot understand how people can avoid seeing and being annoyed by the glaring clichés in the story. Sure, the Japanese did kick some American butt, everyone knows that from history books, so the filmmakers couldn't really change the hard facts. Instead they showed that at least they were actually better than the Japanese, as is shown in the idiotic dogfighting and retaliation bombing sequence, or the "simple cook shows that pure patriotism can help shoot down some Japanese planes" scene.
"One on one the Americans would have prevailed because they are better", the movie seems to say, because that's the patriotic feeling Americans have and the movie works at that level to make its countrymen like it. Americans that can't tell the difference between a movie that makes them cry a little and feel good about their country, and a movie that has genuine artistic qualities.
Some say this is simply entertainment, but it annoys me and insults my intelligence when a movie takes itself as seriously while being so glaringly made for the sole purpose of making money.