Midway
2019 · Directed by Roland Emmerich
Original language: English
- war
- history
- drama
- action
The story
The story of the Battle of Midway, and the leaders and soldiers who used their instincts, fortitude and bravery to overcome massive odds.
What it’s like
Broad, sun-washed Pacific skies and flat grey ocean dominate the frame, with the gunmetal of carrier decks and the orange glow of burning aircraft cutting through them. Its look is big-budget studio realism: crisp digital imagery, wide establishing shots of task forces steaming across open water, and sweeping aerial dogfights rendered with a glossy, slightly overproduced polish. Interiors of the Navy's operations rooms are lit in dim, cigarette-haze amber, all tense murmurs and clacking teletypes, while the score swells with martial brass and strings whenever the planes take off. The overall vibe is earnest, stirring and procedural, closer to a respectful history lesson than to a meditation. Pacing is brisk and episodic, cutting between the command room and the cockpits, and the emotional register is patriotic, admiring and steady, following a set of commanders and pilots as they weigh hard decisions and pay for them. Violence is frequent and visually explicit: sea and air battles with ships ablaze, explosions, plane crashes and drowning, with some graphic wounds and deaths, though it stays away from lingering gore. It suits a weekend afternoon with a bit of appetite for war history, and it is for viewers who want large-scale naval action framed around courage and command.
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