You should go and watch Midway, the newly released Roland Emmerich movie celebrating the June 1942 U.S. victory at the Battle of Midway. While reviewers have offered mixed receptions to the movie, I give it an A grade.
First off, Midway offers great attention to historical detail. Charting the U.S. Navy’s desperate struggle to regain its footing after the disaster at Pearl Harbor, we’re given a rare insight (rare, at least, by entertainment production standards) into the urgent prioritization of good leadership. Played by the always capable Woody Harrelson, Adm. Chester Nimitz is quickly drafted to shake up the Pacific Fleet and regain the strategic initiative. At the same time, we see Aaron Eckhart as Jimmy Doolittle, leading his bombers on their ambitious retaliatory attack on the Japanese homeland. To their credit, Midway‘s filmmakers pay homage to the Chinese civilians and soldiers who helped bring Doolittle to safety.
We also see the instrumental role of Ed Leyton, a Naval intelligence officer on Nimitz’s staff. Relying on signal intelligence and his own instincts, Leyton helps guide Nimitz toward the showdown at Midway island. The stress on Leyton, even though he’s behind the front lines, is shown to be extraordinary.
Then comes the battle.
With three American carriers (Enterprise, Yorktown, and Hornet) aligned against four Japanese carriers, American victory is no certain thing. But through the prism of Enterprise squadron Cmdr. Dick Best, we see how the courageous American bomber squadrons pushed through natural fear to break the back of the Imperial Japanese Navy. One hundred fifty American planes were lost that day, but victory was won. The Japanese carriers are crippled, and Adm. Isoroku Yamamoto, played excellently by Etsushi Toyokawa, realizes that the war is effectively lost.
That was why the Battle of Midway was so instrumental to the ultimate victory: It denied the Japanese navy its ability to project a continuing multifront offensive. With American industrial power now matched to restored American confidence, the U.S. military was able to retake the Pacific for the cause of human freedom.
Yet, the beauty of Midway is not simply its accurate retelling of a critical moment in our history. This movie also reflects the true nature of war, something brutal but sometimes necessary. With the wreck of the submarine USS Grayback found just last week, 75 years after it was lost in action off Japan, Midway is a reminder of a generation that sacrificed very much for America and the world.
