On War Films and HMV

A look at my stash of DVDs will reveal how much I love war films. They form the largest number I have of any genres. Saving Private Ryan (4/5), The Thin Red Line (4.5/5) are the ones I possess. Merry Christmas (3.5/5) can be considered as having sub-war theme. I have also watched

1. The Pianist (4/5),
2. The Longest Day (4/5),
3. The Schindlers' List (4/5),
4. Brotherhood (4/5)
5. Enemy at the Gates (2.5/5),
6. Pearl Harbor (0.5/5),
7. part of The Greatest Raid (unable to rate),
8. We Were Soldiers (2.5/5),
9. part of Windtalkers (unable to rate),

though the last five films I mentioned are mediocre stuff. The rest are great though. I also can't wait to watch Flag of our Fathers and Letters from Iwo Jima, both by Clint Eastwood. Somehow a director can produce either a war film that I absolutely love, or one that I will absolutely hate. A good war film will make me think about its futility as the deeply philosophical The Thin Red Line had done so effectively, and even cry for its showcase of humanity and morality, as in The Pianist. A bad one, makes me cry because I have wasted my time.

Tora! Tora! Tora!, a 1970s film depicting the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, has just been added to my collection. Bought this and The Godfather at HMV just now. And I am eyeing Francis Coppola's Apocalypse Now (which is about the Vietnam War)... if I have the money.

Truth to be told, it was a pretty good film. It was shot from both the Americans' and Japanese' point of views. Better than the crap that was Pearl Harbor, which was destroyed by a very lame subplot involving Kate Beckinsale and the two handsome boys (Josh Hartnett and Ben Affleck), which I JUST DON'T CARE. You know how subplots can kill the entire show. Enemy at the Gates started off very impressively. It showed the Russians' loyalty to protect 'the Motherland' and in their cause for their communist ideas, charged, almost unarmed at several German machines guns. Many lost their lives. The scene was fantastic, but the movie was let down by a lame sniper versus sniper subplot. From a war film it degraded into personal rivalry between 2 people... how lame is that!

I was also amazed at the way Tora! Tora! Tora! was shot. Techologically speaking, it was 30 years back, yet when compared to Pearl Harbor, it looked more realistic. I really wonder how they actually shot it. It is void of any lame subplots, but is actually a historical play of what happened, much like in The Longest Day. Though I have to say it was also its downfall. It looked like you are reading from a history textbook. It is totally historical. And the lack of human emotions means that the only thing that is there left for me to like was its almost epic scale of the attack. It promised much action, and it delivered at the end.

Now unto HMV. You know how the prices of their DVDs can change so drastically. I am eyeing their The Usual Suspects, a thriller film. It was priced at $68 the last time I looked at it. Now it is at $48, still insanely high. I am determined to wait a while longer for the price to drop before I actually buy it. Some other films I am tempted to buy are The Insider, starring Russell Crowe, and Se7en starring Brad Pitt, and The Godfather Part II.