Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * *
Cast: Ed Skrein, Patrick Wilson, Luke Evans, Woody Harrelson, Mandy Moore, Dennis Quaid, Alexander Ludwig, Aaron Eckhart, Darren Criss, Nick Jonas, Jake Weber, Luke Kleintank, Keean Johnson, David Hewlett, Mark Rolston, Tadanobu Asano, Brennan Brown, James Carpinello, Geoffrey Blake, Greg Hovanessian, Jake Manley, Ellen Dubin, Matthew MacCaull, Raynesa Jonas, Christie Brooke, Jacob Blair, Jun Kunimura, Cameron Brodeur, Rachael Perrell Fosket, Brandon Sklenar, Peter Shinkoda, Etsushi Toyokawa, Jason New, Sammy Azero, Leonardo Bourreau, Dean Schaller, Yuta Takenaka, Eric Davis, Tony Nowicki, Kasey Ryne Mazek.
Looking back upon the early days of cinema serves as a reminder of the reason why it became so popular, not only was it a form of entertainment that captured the imagination but in the world of the silent film the audience could bring their own narrative to the story unfolding around them and make it their own. There were of course the written words on the black background, but that might on reflection be seen as a guide, as a director’s steering, but on the whole, the scene was filled in by the inventiveness of the watcher enthralled by the action on screen.
The days of the silent film had a point, a sizeable one, one that does not fit every film, but the occasional one, the one where the action on screen overshadows the narrative, where the truth of one overwhelms the other as if opening it up to ridicule.
War is not to be taken lightly, neither should the interpretation of it be seen as being one of the desire to shy away from the spoken words, the speeches, which are meant to give it clarity, meaning, sombre illumination and yet as good Midway is when it comes to the feel of unremitting war, the waves of attacks that were objectified by both the American and Japanese armies, the bitterness of division and empire building that saw Pearl Harbour and the island of Midway bombed, the dialogue is one of absolute pity, of the sense of cliche that comes unrepentantly out of the blocks and head-butts the watcher into a semi-comatose state of boredom.
If war is the big reveal of human nature, then Midway opens the curtains and exposes the prevalence for jingoistic nonsense masquerading as drama, every line delivered is one that could be seen coming a mile off, without the aid of binoculars and predicted without hesitation; as good, as exciting as the aerial dog fight scenes over the pacific were, the dialogue is arguably the poorest delivered on screen for a generation.
Unlike many of its predecessors in the last 30 years, Saving Private Ryan, Hacksaw Ridge, Black Book, Son Of Saul, Dunkirk and even the fictionalised Inglorious Bastards, what comes tellingly is the lack of heart, the audience member may feel nothing to the fate of a single character because they have seen it all before, the hero with nothing to lose, the redemption, the fatalistic restored to a sense of worthiness, none of it makes the difference to a film in which it arguably could be advised to put earphones in your ears and let your own imagination work in tandem with the picture on show.
For a film that is supposed to capture the dynamic of one of the turning points of World War Two, Midway is a huge disappointment, one that lives up to every cliché in the cinematic bible. A poor showing, undeserving of the brave and selflessness acts of courage derived on both sides of the battle.
Ian D. Hall