A mediocre war film. This movie has it all - an admiral and his staff discussing the dire situation, ragtag soldiers (or pilots) sacrificing themselves, wives and children worrying at home, and action-packed battle scenes. But everything feels like you have seen it before somewhere else, and nothing exceeds expectations.
Fundamentally, this flim is unfocused and too long for what it is. The Battle of Midway itself accounts for only one half of the film. The first half shows bits and pieces of prior engagements including Pearl Harbor, Battle of the Coral Sea, and Doolittle Raid. Those episodes can make good stories too, but they are not directly relevant to Midway (or, at least, this film fails to link up these events in a coherent story line).
Characters are disastrously shallow. They are just like symbols each assigned to a typical role in war movies and uttering designated cliches. In fact, the best characters in this film are the Japanese ones in my opinion.
Cinematography is ok, but nothing outstanding. Many scenes look cheap because they are so obviously computer-generated. Of course we know it's all CGI nowadays, but it still hurts when it actually looks like CGI. (Probably something is wrong with the rendering of fire. See some of the Pearl Harbor scenes.)
An upside of the movie is its generally even-handed approach in depicting American and Japanese sides. Many war films, such as Pearl Harbor (2001) and Hacksaw Ridge (2016) for example, show the Japanese as inhumane demons or maniacs. On the other hand, this film follows the style of Tora! Tora! Tora! (1970) by showing how the Japanese made decisions for their part. It even explains briefly why the Japanese were "forced" to attack the U. S. But consistency fails here again when the Japanese tie an American POW to an anchor and throws him overboard.
All in all, this film shouldn't be a high priority in your war movie list. There are many more worthy films dedicated to naval battles of the Pacific War.
Fundamentally, this flim is unfocused and too long for what it is. The Battle of Midway itself accounts for only one half of the film. The first half shows bits and pieces of prior engagements including Pearl Harbor, Battle of the Coral Sea, and Doolittle Raid. Those episodes can make good stories too, but they are not directly relevant to Midway (or, at least, this film fails to link up these events in a coherent story line).
Characters are disastrously shallow. They are just like symbols each assigned to a typical role in war movies and uttering designated cliches. In fact, the best characters in this film are the Japanese ones in my opinion.
Cinematography is ok, but nothing outstanding. Many scenes look cheap because they are so obviously computer-generated. Of course we know it's all CGI nowadays, but it still hurts when it actually looks like CGI. (Probably something is wrong with the rendering of fire. See some of the Pearl Harbor scenes.)
An upside of the movie is its generally even-handed approach in depicting American and Japanese sides. Many war films, such as Pearl Harbor (2001) and Hacksaw Ridge (2016) for example, show the Japanese as inhumane demons or maniacs. On the other hand, this film follows the style of Tora! Tora! Tora! (1970) by showing how the Japanese made decisions for their part. It even explains briefly why the Japanese were "forced" to attack the U. S. But consistency fails here again when the Japanese tie an American POW to an anchor and throws him overboard.
All in all, this film shouldn't be a high priority in your war movie list. There are many more worthy films dedicated to naval battles of the Pacific War.
