Remembering Pearl Harbor Day Through the Movies

Posted by Susan Doll on December 7, 2009

When I was a little girl, my father taught me about Pearl Harbor Day. He was a World War II army veteran and had served in the Philippines and New Guinea. Like many vets of that generation, he did not talk much about his experiences, which I am sure were as horrific as they are in any war. However, on occasion, he would bring up something related to the war: For example, he loathed and despised General Douglas MacArthur for his “I have returned” moment when the general was recorded by dozens of news cameras marching onto the beach of Leyte Island in the Philippines. My Dad said that thousands of soldiers had been there hours before him and had cleared the way, making it safe for MacArthur to have his photo opportunity. The good general did not have the graciousness to acknowledge those soldiers, and my father thought MacArthur an ungrateful glory hound. He said that weeks later when his base showed the famous newsreel of MacArthur splashing through the water as he landed on Leyte Island, the audience of soldiers booed and threw things at the screen. I doubt if you will read about that one in the history books!!

MacArthur aside, my father was truly a patriotic man, though he never wore it on his sleeve or used patriotism to justify a political stance like we see so often today. After he explained Pearl Harbor to me, December 7th was generally acknowledged in our household with a “Hey, Bud, remember what happened on this day?” Currently, in the wake of 9/11, Pearl Harbor Day tends to be remembered only in comparison to the destruction of the Twin Towers eight years ago, and perhaps that is natural. After all, almost 70 years have passed since December 7, 1941, and contemporary hostilities in the Middle East have imprinted our culture with new fears and concerns. Still, I was happy to see that TCM is remembering Pearl Harbor today with Frank Capra’s Why We Fight series, beginning this morning and continuing throughout the afternoon. It reminded me of the tremendous role that the Hollywood industry played in the war effort. Hollywood was not only a ready source of information through newsreels and documentaries but a source of inspiration through narrative movies, bond drives, and USO tours. Hollywood’s massive participation in the war effort helped promote a sense of social and political unity in this country that I have yet to experience in my lifetime, and the way things are going, I don’t think I will. For this reason, I have a soft spot for this era of movie history.

CAPRA EDITS "THE BATTLE OF CHINA"

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Top 12 x 2 for 2009

Posted by keelsetter on December 6, 2009

What is the fascination with the number 10? Why is it always a “Top 10″ list? There are 12 months in the year and there are four six-packs to a case of beer – which is 12 x 2 for those keeping score (and trust me, you want the case discount because the savings do add up). In my case (excuse the pun), I’ve got 12 now under my belt, but still have another 12 lined-up and ready to go. READ MORE

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“It’s a Human Drama Thang!”

Posted by morlockjeff on December 5, 2009

That’s how Benny Perkins, one of the contestants in the “Hands on a Hard Body” contest describes this unusual endurance contest in Longview, Texas which was once an annual event that officially began in 1992. I first became aware of S.R. Bindler’s enthralling, hilarious and sometimes moving documentary of the event during a visit to New York City in 1998. Scanning the film section of The Village Voice for showings of movies unlikely to come to Atlanta, the title HANDS ON A HARD BODY caught my eye and sounded like some sort of softcore exploitation film possibly set during Spring Break in Fort Lauderdale. READ MORE

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Here’s the thing…

Posted by Richard Harland Smith on December 4, 2009

Have you ever looked at a word with which you’ve been familiar all your life as if you were seeing it suddenly with new eyes… and it just looks weird? I had that experience yesterday with the word “thing.” Isn’t the word thing… well, a thing? It says nothing, and yet it says it all. READ MORE

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The Straight Story on Richard Farnsworth

Posted by moirafinnie on December 2, 2009

A holiday movie, like the raised expectations of the festive season, can be burdened with some pretty extravagant hopes. Like the day itself, we always seem to hope for a cinematic experience that might transcend the reality of an enjoyable if sometimes stressful day such as Thanksgiving. This year we got lucky. After rejecting family votes for some familiar films, including Avalon (1990-Barry Levinson), with its cri de coeur line, “you cut the too-key without me?!” spoken by with the now immortal Lou Jacobi; any hopes for those who wanted to see The Searchers (1956-John Ford) for the umpteenth time were also dashed; as was one l-tryptophan induced vote for Pulp Fiction (1994-Quentin Tarantino). We finally settled on a movie with little obvious connection to the holidays, The Straight Story (1999) on DVD.

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The Aesthetics of Football

Posted by R. Emmet Sweeney on December 1, 2009

Rob Carr/AP

A few weeks back I examined the directorial decisions that went into Fox’s World Series broadcast. Every play in baseball contains an inherent drama easy for a camera to pick out – the duel between pitcher and catcher. This offers an easy, lucid way for the production team to escalate tension, and the natural rhythm between pitches dictates the pace. Football, with its spread out action and endless commercial breaks, presents a more difficult challenge in creating and maintaining a rhythm and a narrative. There are almost too many shots for a director to choose from. There are 22 players on the field at all times, and any one of them can become the focal point.

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