Tora! Tora! Tora! (1970)

A dramatization of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor and the series of American blunders that allowed it to happen.

Directors:

Richard Fleischer, Kinji Fukasaku,

Writers:

Larry Forrester (screenplay), Hideo Oguni (screenplay),

Stars:

Martin Balsam, Sô Yamamura, Joseph Cotten

Won 1 Oscar. Another 1 win & 7 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Martin Balsam	...	Adm. Husband E. Kimmel
Sô Yamamura	...	Adm. Isoroku Yamamoto (as Soh Yamamura)
Joseph Cotten	...	Secretary of War Henry L. Stimson
Tatsuya Mihashi	...	Cmdr. Minoru Genda
E.G. Marshall	...	Lt. Col. Rufus S. Bratton
James Whitmore	...	Vice Adm. William F. 'Bull' Halsey Jr.
Takahiro Tamura	...	Lt. Cmdr. Mitsuo Fuchida
Eijirô Tôno	...	Vice Adm. Chuichi Nagumo (as Eijiro Tono)
Jason Robards	...	Lt. Gen. Walter C. Short
Wesley Addy	...	Lt. Cmdr. Alwin D. Kramer
Shôgo Shimada	...	Japanese Ambassador Kichisaburo Nomura
Frank Aletter	...	Lt. Cmdr. Francis J. Thomas - USS Nevada
Koreya Senda	...	Prime Minister Prince Fumimaro Konoye
Leon Ames	...	Secretary of the Navy Frank Knox
Junya Usami	...	Adm. Zengo Yoshida

Storyline

In 1941 the Japanese are at odds with the United States on a number of issues which they are attempting to resolve via their Washington embassy. In case this diplomacy fails, the military are hatching plans for a surprise early Sunday morning air attack on the U.S. base at Pearl Harbour. American intelligence is breaking the Japanese diplomatic messages but few high-ups are prepared to believe that an attack is likely, let alone where or how it might come.

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Plot Keywords:

attack | pearl harbor | japan | hawaii | navy | 

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Taglines:

From 20th Century Fox. The most spectacle film ever made.

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Drama | History | War

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Certificate:

G

Details

Country:

USA Japan

Language:

English Japanese

Release Date:

23 September 1970 (USA)

Also Known As:

I epopoiia tou Pearl Harbor

Filming Locations:

Ashiya, Japan

Box Office

Budget:

$25,000,000 (estimated)

Gross:

$14,500,000 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation, Toei Company

Technical Specs

Runtime:

144 min 160 min (Extended Japanese Edition 2009)

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) Mono (some 35 mm prints) 4-Track Stereo (some 35 mm prints)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Shôgo Shimada and Hisao Toake, who played Ambassadors Nomura and Kurusu, were the only cast members to work with both the Japanese and American units. Shimada's English language dialog was looped by Paul Frees.

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Goofs

The Japanese aircraft are shown with the national insignia having a white outline around the red "sun". The white outline was not used until 1943.

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Quotes

Frank Knox: [reading a report of the attack] Oh, no, no, this can't be right; they must mean the Philippines!
Admiral Stark: No, sir. It's Pearl!
Frank Knox: [to his aide] Get me the White House, the direct line!

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Connections

Referenced in Mystery Science Theatre 3000: The Crawling Eye (1989)

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Soundtracks

"The Star-Spangled Banner"
Music based on "The Anacreontic Song" by John Stafford Smith

User Reviews

A definite must for anyone who's curious about Pearl Harbor.

I will be completely honest with all of you, I saw this movie to prepare for the upcoming 2001 block buster, PEARL HARBOR. TORA! TORA! TORA! seemed the perfect choice. Recent movies these days depressed me, but thanks to TORA! (and Clint Eastwood 's HIGH PLAINS DRIFTER), my enjoyment in watching movies returned. TORA! is an absolutely excellent film packed with incredibly well done acting and emotion and an overall feeling that leaves you blown away. PEARL HARBOR has quite a bit to live up to after seeing this. The special effects produced in TORA! are completely out of this world (even after thirty years!). More credit goes to how well documented this story goes. The Americans and Japanese did a tremendously exceptional job of recreating the entire events leading up to and including the Pearl Harbor attack. Being a Canadian, I was confused a couple years ago when the local paper announced that the number two (of the top 100) event of the 1900's was the attack on Pearl Harbor. I completely understand now and quite frankly am amazed at how both sides felt throughout the entire ordeal.

Simply put, TORA! TORA! TORA! deals with all the events, mistakes (both minor and MAJOR), people involved and attitudes leading up to and during the air raid on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. Though not shown, we even have the general feeling of the U.S. President and the Japanese Emperor. Nothing is missed in this movie. It is as close to the actual depiction of Pearl Harbor you can get.

For 1970, the special effects are absolutely astonishing. Very little looks fake, and nothing looks over done (like many CGI effects do these days). When the first American battletanks are struck, the explosions are incredible. When the Zero crashes into the building, the explosion is eye catching. Everything is unbelievably excellent. The acting is also first rate, how the Americans handle the warnings of a Japanese attack (they're nuts) was supremely well laid out. How the Japanese carefully planned the attack on Pearl Harbor was frighteningly well thought out. Next credit must go to the music. Jerry Goldsmith has to be one of the greatest composers of all time. The suspense created on the morning of December 7 just before the attack is still hair chilling thirty years later. Nothing seems to be wrong with TORA! except the fact that it is a little too long. A couple times, I was hoping that the attack would just begin and get over with. My patience quickly subsided with that music score and with the Emperor's poem. Very little is wrong with TORA! TORA! TORA!. It is a definite must see for anyone curious about how war works, how mistakes are made and how people respond to such attacks.