Tora! Tora! Tora!

Tora! Tora! Tora!
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Name	Tora! Tora! Tora!
Director	Richard Fleischer, Kinji Fukasaku, Toshio Masuda
Producer	Elmo Williams, Darryl F. Zanuck
Writer	Larry Forrester, Hideo Oguni, Ryuzo Kikushima
Starring	Martin Balsam, Joseph Cotten, Sō Yamamura
Music	Jerry Goldsmith
Cinematography	Charles F. Wheeler, Shinsaku Himeda, Masamichi Satoh
Editing	James E. Newcom
Studio	20th Century Fox
Released	1970
Runtime	144 minutes
Country	United States, Japan
Language	English, Japanese
Budget	$25 million
Gross	$29.2 million

Tora! Tora! Tora! is a 1970 American film directed by Richard Fleischer, Kinji Fukasaku, and Toshio Masuda, and produced by Elmo Williams and Darryl F. Zanuck. The film features an ensemble cast, including Martin Balsam, Joseph Cotten, and Sō Yamamura, and tells the story of the Attack on Pearl Harbor from both the United States and Japanese perspectives, involving key figures such as Isoroku Yamamoto, Hirohito, and Franklin D. Roosevelt. The film's narrative is intertwined with historical events, including the Tripartite Pact and the Lend-Lease Act, and explores the diplomatic tensions between the United States, Japan, and the United Kingdom.

Production

The production of Tora! Tora! Tora! was a collaborative effort between 20th Century Fox and Toho Studios, with Akira Kurosawa initially involved as a director, but later replaced by Kinji Fukasaku due to creative differences, which also involved George Lucas and Francis Ford Coppola. The film's script was written by Larry Forrester, Hideo Oguni, and Ryuzo Kikushima, and was based on the book Tora! Tora! Tora! by Gordon W. Prange, which was also influenced by the works of Samuel Eliot Morison and Gar Alperovitz. The film's score was composed by Jerry Goldsmith, who also worked on the scores for Planet of the Apes and Chinatown, and involved Henry Mancini and John Williams. The film's cinematography was handled by Charles F. Wheeler, Shinsaku Himeda, and Masamichi Satoh, who also worked on The Sand Pebbles and The Bridge on the River Kwai, and involved Akira Kurosawa and Sergei Eisenstein.

Historical_accuracy

The historical accuracy of Tora! Tora! Tora! has been praised for its attention to detail and its portrayal of the events leading up to the Attack on Pearl Harbor, which involved key figures such as Cordell Hull, Henry L. Stimson, and George C. Marshall. The film's depiction of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor is accurate, and the film's use of real-life footage and archival materials adds to its historical authenticity, which was also influenced by the Nuremberg Trials and the Tokyo War Crimes Tribunal. However, some artistic liberties were taken to enhance the film's narrative, including the portrayal of Isoroku Yamamoto as a reluctant participant in the attack, which was also influenced by the Potsdam Declaration and the Japanese Instrument of Surrender. The film's historical accuracy has been praised by historians such as Stephen Ambrose and John Toland, who also wrote about the D-Day and the Battle of Stalingrad.

Release_and_reception

Tora! Tora! Tora! was released in 1970 to mixed reviews from critics, with some praising the film's historical accuracy and others criticizing its pacing and lack of character development, which was also influenced by the Vietnam War and the Cold War. The film was a commercial success, grossing over $29 million at the box office, and has since become a classic of American cinema, influencing films such as Apocalypse Now and Platoon, which involved Francis Ford Coppola and Oliver Stone. The film has been recognized by the American Film Institute as one of the greatest films of all time, and has been selected for preservation in the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress, which also recognized the Battle of Gettysburg and the Great Depression.

Cast

The cast of Tora! Tora! Tora! includes Martin Balsam as Admiral Husband Kimmel, Joseph Cotten as Henry L. Stimson, and Sō Yamamura as Isoroku Yamamoto, as well as E.G. Marshall as Colonel Rufus S. Bratton, James Whitmore as Admiral William F. Halsey Jr., and Jason Robards as General Walter C. Short, who were all influenced by the United States Army and the United States Navy. The film also features a number of notable Japanese actors, including Tatsuya Mihashi as Commander Minoru Genda and Takashi Shimura as Captain Kameto Kuroshima, who were also influenced by the Imperial Japanese Army and the Imperial Japanese Navy.

Plot

The plot of Tora! Tora! Tora! follows the events leading up to the Attack on Pearl Harbor, from the Japanese perspective, involving key figures such as Hideki Tojo and Fumimaro Konoe, and from the American perspective, involving key figures such as Franklin D. Roosevelt and Cordell Hull. The film depicts the diplomatic tensions between the United States and Japan, including the Japanese invasion of China and the United States embargo on Japan, and explores the military planning and preparation for the attack, which involved the Japanese Combined Fleet and the United States Pacific Fleet. The film's climax features a detailed and accurate depiction of the Attack on Pearl Harbor, which involved the Japanese aircraft carrier Akagi and the United States battleship USS Arizona, and has been praised for its historical accuracy and attention to detail, which was also influenced by the Battle of Midway and the Battle of Guadalcanal.