Product: Midway (Collector's Edition) (1976)
Rating: 4.0
A serious film about this pivotal WWII naval battle.
The film takes advantage of actual WWII combat film footage as it presents the battle from both the perspective of the United States and Japan. Many international stars perform as the key figures in the respective naval forces. We see the battle emerge as estranged United States naval officers (father and son) portrayed by Charlton Heston and Edward Albert, meet in Hawaii and move to their respective duty assignments. The film makes a thoughtful attempt to give an historically accurate presentation of events. It is entertaining and shot with clear visual effects when not using actual combat film footage. Weaknesses in the DVD presentation are; a sound track with light background static; and during the Japanese attack on Wake Island, a few scenes appear to be lifted frame-for-frame from the 1970 film 'Tora! Tora! Tora!', and for people familiar with the earlier film, this is distracting.