A Wonderous Cinematic Achievement Unfairly Maligned by the Reputation of it's Creators

Rating: Null/10 (10 June 2014)

Unfairly maligned because of its stars, director and genre, Pearl Harbor is still a decent attempt at paying tribute to a significant, tragic event in American history, and does a pretty fine job of it. If only Bay had removed the clichéd love triangle aspects from the script, this might have been an overwhelming critical success. It's no "Saving Private Ryan", but it's a damn fine effort. You can hate me for saying this but I don't care; the cinematography is absolutely stunning and beautiful - I challenge you to not freeze any frame an not call it finely staged photography. As well, it's 3 hour run time flies by like a breeze. In addition, the 'cheesy' elements of the script were completely enjoyable; Bay makes it clear he's paying homage, (a la the scene at the start of the film where Affleck's character talks about paying respects to past achievements - "they call it an homage"), to the love stories on screen in the 1940's and 50's, the films which the characters in the film would watch and love, (the newsreels watched throughout the film are reminiscent/copies of Frank Capra's "Why We Fight" films from the same time period). This is a great film that will likely stand the test of time.
Seriously. This is a damn good film. Matt Stone and Trey Parker don't own the public opinion.