Pearl Harbor (2001)

On a sleepy Sunday morning in December, as children played and families prayed, squadrons of Japanese warplanes screamed across the skies of a Hawaiian paradise and launched a surprise attack on the U.S. armed forces at Pearl Harbor. The infamous day that jolted America from peaceful isolationism to total war and altered the course of history is relived in this epic tale of patriotism, passion and romance from producer Jerry Bruckheimer and producer/director Michael Bay. "Pearl Harbor" focuses on the life-changing events surrounding December 7, 1941, and the war's devastating impact on two daring young pilots (Ben Affleck and Josh Hartnett) and a beautiful, dedicated nurse (Kate Beckinsale). It is a tale of catastrophic defeat, heroic victory, personal courage and overwhelming love set against a stunning backdrop of spectacular wartime action

What's different about 'Pearl Harbor' -- we had one of the admirals of the Pacific Fleet and some other admirals just watch the movie and they said, 'This is like an attack you've never seen on film before in terms of the scope.' When I was preparing 'Pearl Harbor,' 'Saving Private Ryan' and 'The Thin Red Line' had come out. When you compare 'Saving Private Ryan' to 'Pearl Harbor' (in terms of) just the events -- the D-Day invasion is more about blood and guts and hand-to-hand combat whereas 'Pearl Harbor' is much more about surprise, loss of innocence, the spectacle. Because it was such a swift attack. It lasted about an hour and 45 minutes. It was an air-sea war (with) battleships sinking. I obviously watched those movies and trying to figure, 'Well, the world having seen those movies, how am I going to make this one different and feel different?'

Jerry Bruckheimer has made a career out of knowing how to pick big, loud, emotional filled stories and turn them into monster blockbusters (Top Gun, The Rock, Remember the Titans, etc...). Add director Michael Bay (The Rock & Armageddon) to the equation and you can pretty well be rest assured that you're going to get a popcorn movie that appeals to the masses. Pearl Harbor is a perfect Bruckheimer treatment - you can't get more patriotic, it's based on reality, the time period is inherently dramatic and romantic and a Bruckheimer budget assures some pretty awesome effects. Sounds like a sure fire hit. The question is will the film be all fluff and flag waving or will it do service to the time period while also being a good film. You can bet the farm, Pearl Harbor surely won't be Saving Private Ryan from either a reality or quality standpoint. What it will be is an old style pot boiler with some 21st century fireworks.