Before Watching: Pearl Harbor (Theatrical version) (2001)

Rating: 7/10 (3 January 2020)

"Pearl Harbor" (2001) is a movie following two pilots and a woman during the events before, during and after Pearl Harbor. If you want to get as much out of it as possible, there are a few things you need to keep in mind before watching:
First, there are two versions of Pearl Harbor - the theatrical version and the Director's Cut. The Director's Cut has slightly different love scenes and a lot of added violence and gore, as well as somewhat cruder language. The Director's Cut is therefore rated R and represent more accurately the shocking brutality of warfare. Depending on the viewer and his or her relation to war violence, either could be preferable, as the violence in the theatrical version is much more scaled down. This review is of the theatrical version:
Pearl Harbor may be known and labeled by some as a slow, pro-American, over-explosive and historically inaccurate war movie - sprinkled with distracting love relationships on top. These labels could be justifiable; the movie is over 3 hours long with over an hour of set-up before the actual skirmish, which does feature a lot of explosions and destruction. Throughout the runtime, Americans are depicted as strong, charismatic heroes while the enemy (whether Japanese or German) are invasive and ruthless. Added to all this is plenty of anachronisms and details which doesn't make sense nor add up, and a lot of the plot does hinge on love relationships. It is a lot of spectacle and drama, and the violence in the theatrical version can feel inaccurate. These are all valid points to criticize, but in so doing, it needs to be known that neither of these points necessarily distract unless one is pre-occupied with them. As entertainment and as a vessel to carry an important story, Pearl Harbor holds up fine. The views are shot beautifully with a nice variance of vistas, the score by Hans Zimmer is swelling and fits the movie well, and the poignant points rarely feel blunt. The actors and actresses feel genuine as well.
In summary - this movie does have faults and is therefore perhaps not for everyone. Still, the less this movie is viewed as a documentary and more as an interpretation with some liberty, the more enjoyable it will become.
My personal grade: an acceptable 7/10. If you found this helpful, check my profile for more reviews.