Reviews

If you want to see the Pacific version of HBO's critically acclaimed "Band of Brothers", change the channel

"The Pacific" differs from "Band of Brothers" whereas the "The Pacific" focuses on the war itself and "Band of Brothers" focused on the characters. Both miniseries are championed by Hollywood heavy-hitters Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg who were contributing writers and producers of both miniseries.

Perhaps the greatest distinction between the two mini-series was intentional. It is clear that the soldiers in the Pacific theater fought a different kind of war than those fighting in Europe. "The Pacific" is a gritty if not gory depiction of a war against not just the Japanese, but also the elements. The cast is made-up of some brilliant actors we are sure to see again in future projects. What makes "The Pacific" so good is the intense realism which brings the viewer into the battle from the safety of your couch. If there is hell on earth, you will find it here.

The army they are fighting is alien; both mysterious and ferocious. They are looked at with both awe and disdain and the Americans want to kill them all. However, there is a palpable sense fear among the men that this enemy will never surrender and will fight beyond what they feel is humanly if not morally possible. When one character hears about the Kamikaze's flying their planes into ships, he asks aloud "how can any man do that?" "The Pacific" is fast-paced and each episode leaves the viewer wanting more.

What lacks in the series is the intimacy of knowing the characters. They are kept at a distance almost as if the character doesn't want to let you in. This may be the intent of the writers; just as the soldiers took little interest in knowing each other, maybe we are not meant to know the characters.

By the time I saw the Hurt Locker, I already knew that the picture had won Academy Award for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, Best Sound Editing, Best Sound Mixing, and Best Film Editing. I would say that expectations were high, but it won't change my review. The Hurt Locker is a movie lost in its own pointless plot. The story has been told before just in a different theater of combat. Jeremy Renner plays a soldier who is more comfortable in a war zone than his own home. He is the stereotypical renegade serving in an a Ordinance Disposal Unit. His character, Sergeant First Class William James, is fearless when it comes to defusing bombs. This puts him at odds with his unit who see him as dangerous and a threat to their own safety. Renner deserves no acclaim when it comes to his acting. He plays the character with well, but it really isn't acomplicated role.

Kathryn Bigelow received critical acclaim as the director for creating a suspenseful documentary-style film. I didn't feel the suspense other than the suspense of waiting for the film to live-up to the hype. It was boorish and unworthy of an Oscar. One has to wonder if the distributer of the film, Summit Entertainment, really deserves the credit for a well-run Oscar campaign, or was this slight against her ex-husband James Cameron who is better known for his bad-mannered arrogance than his movies within the Hollywood circles.

This is a movie that leaves a viewer saying aloud "is that it?" as the credits rolled. It also doesn't help that the true heroes of the Iraqi war, the veterans, admonished the film as "inaccurate" and "offending".