Movie Review : Pearl Harbor

On Sunday morning, December 7, 1941, at 7:55 AM the Japanese Empire led a surprise attack on the US Naval base Pearl Harbor in Hawaii, that would leave millions of Americans in shock, and heartbroken. Before the attack, the United States kept a low profile on International affairs, and concentrated on the domestic affairs at hand. This tragic moment in American history forever remembered. It is a mournful day for the American people, although, for the Japanese Empire it was an honorable day, one they would call a

Pearl Harbor is just one event that has shaped American history. With this being a topic of interest to many, authors like to use it as a setting for a fictional story. As a reader, it is important to remember that when reading historical fiction, some elements of the story will be truth while others will be made up. In the book I survived the bombing of Pearl Harbor it would seem that the author Lauren Tarshis was more concerned about writing a story rather than accurately portraying history.

Introduction: December 7 1941 marked a significant date, when the Japanese launched a surprise attack on the United States Naval base, Pearl Harbour. The day after the attack, on December 8 President Franklin Delano Roosevelt presented his Infamy Speech to American civilians stating that; “Yesterday, December 7th 1941, a date which will live in infamy, the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan. I asked that the Congress declare that since the unprovoked and dastardly attack by Japan on December 7 1941”. The purpose of this report is to show that President Franklin Delano Roosevelt had no prior knowledge about the surprise attack supported by historical evidence in comparison to Robert Stinnett’s thoughts, the American journalist and former sailor that knew about the Japanese planning a attack on Pearl Harbour in advance.

December 7, 1941 was one of America’s darkest days. This was the day of the famous pearl harbor bombing. This attack came from the Japanese attacking the American Naval base in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. The attack had been in the planning for many years to attack and weaken the United States Naval force. Japan wanted to do this to gain more superiority in the Atlantic and to grow their ties with European nations. In this paper I will talk about the people, the planning, the attack, and the aftermath of the Pearl Harbor bombing.

Gowrie, Iowa native, Orval Hasty needed money to attend college, so he joined the marines in 1940, he ended up earning this money after the war. He got assigned at Ford Island to guard In February 1941. Around the 450 acre island there were other vessels and battleships. Orval said, "It was good duty. The climate was nice, we weren 't overworked and it was fun," with regard to the Naval Air Station Ford Island. When not at work Orval attended flying lessons, visited shows, and hung out at beaches. Sleeping in on Sunday mornings was normal for Marines and Sailors not on duty. Orval got up early asking his parents about his driver’s license through the mail. Orval didn’t know what was about to happen. No one knew. Before dawn 183 Japanese bomber planes, torpedo planes and fighter planes took flight on their way to Pearl Harbor. Wave two came later.

President Franklin D. Roosevelt delivered his war speech and asserted December 7, 1941 as, “a date which will live in infamy.” The United States’ naval bases stationed in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii were struck by Japanese planes intentionally and promptly. The news of this attack on the Pearl Harbor shocked the world. It was devastating to the nation that were still in the throes of depression. Witnesses of this event painted a portrait of a nation stunned, but determined to rise again. The United States’ government had not disclosed a Pearl Harbor story to the public--that the U.S. had failed to act on advance information about a planned Japanese attack. Japan 's move against the United States was audacious enough to be considered no more than a slight possibility, although the potential for an attack had been widely discussed.

In Pearl Harbor and the Coming of the Pacific War by Akira Iriye, the author explores the events and circumstances that ended in the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, an American naval base. Iriye assembles a myriad of primary documents, such as proposals and imperial conferences, as well as essays that offer different perspectives of the Pacific War. Not only is the material in Pearl Harbor and the Coming of the Pacific War informative of the situation between Japan and the United States, but it also provides a global context that allows for the readers to interpret Pearl Harbor and the events leading up to it how they may. Ultimately, both Pearl Harbor and the subsequent Pacific War between

On December 7,1941 Japan raided the airbases across the islands of Pearl Harbour. The “sneak attack” targeted the United States Navy. It left 2400 army personnel dead and over a thousand Americans wounded. U.S. Navy termed it as “one of the great defining moments in history”1 President Roosevelt called it as “A Day of Infamy”. 2 As this attack shook the nation and the Japanese Americans became the immediate ‘focal point’. At that moment approximately 112,000 Persons of Japanese descent resided in coastal areas of Oregon, Washington and also in California and Arizona.3

The attack on Pearl Harbor is something that is taught in grade school history. However, if it is being taught correctly that’s a different story. As a child, we believe everything that the teacher taught us even if it was a lie. The story of Pearl Harbor is a horrific event that has been revealing more information throughout the years. What was taught in school was Pearl Harbor was a surprise attack by the Japanese. That the Japanese managed to fly into US Airspace and destroy our ships and planes for no reason. As we research more about this particular topic, we discover that the United States was doing a really good job keeping secrets. For example, the Japanese has a reason to attack the US.

On December 7, 1941 the infamous bombing of Pearl Harbour by the Japanese took place, but who was really responsible? Many historians lay the blame with President Franklin D Roosevelt (FDR), citing his approach to the war as antagonistic and inciting a Japanese attack. This report however will highlight that the Japanese were the real antagonises, deliberately and purposely attacking the United States (US), United Kingdom and Holland, and Pearl Harbour was but a pawn in their war plan, thus alleviating FDR of the historical responsibility bequeathed to him over the last 70 years. The key elements within this review focus on Japan's Pacific War plans, FDR's

The event did not only leave a mark in American history but also, as the shocking moment it was, its impact was visible in many other aspects of American society. Before the attack, the war that was going on in Europe was seen as something that had nothing to do with the US. Americans did not expect their involvement at all. However, once the Pearl Harbor attack took place, war became an important matter in American attitudes to the point of becoming ‘their culture’. The war effort became the household reality (Morella, 2012).

America’s initial response to the Japanese Attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7th, 1941 was that of disbelief and shock. This attack took place on a Sunday morning and what surprised many was the fact that a tiny island nation situated in the Asian mainland could bring out that kind of a feat thousands of miles away from its actual homeland. A major part of this shock and disbelief was based mainly on the stereotypical view that the Americans had on the Japanese people – short people with oriental features that appeared exaggerated.

“Pearl Harbor” is a love story film set in Pearl Harbor during World War II, but many inaccuracies are found throughout the film concerning the war. The film’s depiction of the events and chronology of World War II are inaccurate. Details and the behaviors of characters during the war are also inaccurately portrayed, and certain emotions and messages are wanted to be conveyed by the director of the film, Michael Bay. “Pearl Harbor” inaccurately depicts the true chronology and events of World War II. For starters, the crop duster biplane shown in the beginning shot was not commercially available until the late 30’s, and crop dusting was not a profession until after the end of the war.

The writers and director of Pearl Harbor did, however, have some parts of history correct in their film. Steve Biodrowski states “that U.S. military intelligence should perhaps have done a better job of predicting the attack.” Which is very true and realistic because according to the book; Reflections of Pearl Harbor: An Oral History of December 7, 1941: “The Japanese government began transmitting a fourteen-part encoded message that reached those in charge in Washington, DC, just prior to the scheduled

"Yesterday, December 7, 1941, a day which will live in infamy, the United States of America, was suddenly and deliberately attacked by Naval and Air Forces of the Empire of Japan," delivered by Franklin D. Roosevelt is regarded as one of the most important speeches given in US History to date. The speech was delivered to the State of the Union marking the United States' entrance into the Second World War against Japan and Germany.