Taiheiyô no Washi
1953 / 119m - Japan
War
1.5*/5.0*
Eagle of the Pacific poster

Plot: Yamamoto is a tactical genius and loyal to the emperor of Japan. That puts him in an awkward position, as he is ordered to lead the attack on Pearl Harbor, a mission he opposes. Yamamoto is overruled, so even though he feels the mission should be aborted, he'll do his best to make it work.

Watches

October 10, 2021

1.5*/5.0*

A pre-Godzilla, and so pre-Kaiju film from Honda. Honda's main draw has always been his miniature work, which still comes in handy when doing a war flick. Without the Kaiju cheese though, it's not really the same thing. Eagle of the Pacific is a more serious take on the Pearl Harbor attack.

The first hour is pretty slow, it isn't until the second half that the war scenes introduce some much-needed action. With people like Mifune and Shimura on board this was certainly not an inconspicuous project, though it's not a film that really stands out as majestic nowadays. I'm not surprised Honda took a different path after this.