Tora! Tora! Tora! (1970)

Directors:

Richard Fleischer
Kinji Fukasaku
(more)

Writers:

Larry Forrester (screenplay) &
Hideo Oguni (screenplay) ...
(more)

Release Date:

23 September 1970 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Drama | History | War

Tagline:

The incredible attack on Pearl Harbor.

Plot:

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

Plot Keywords:

Attack | Pearl Harbor | Japan | Hawaii | Navy

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 1 win & 7 nominations

Cast

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
Richard Anderson	...	Capt. John B. Earle
Kazuo Kitamura	...	Foreign Minister Yosuke Matsuoka
Keith Andes	...	Gen. George C. Marshall
Susumu Fujita	...	Rear Adm. Tamon Yamaguchi
Edward Andrews	...	Adm. Harold R. Stark
Bontarô Miake	...	Adm. Koshiro Oikawa (as Bontaro Miyake)
Neville Brand	...	Lt. Harold Kaminsky
Ichirô Ryûzaki	...	Rear Adm. Ryunosuke Kusaka (as Ichiro Reuzaki)
Leora Dana	...	Mrs. Kramer
Asao Uchida	...	Gen. Hideki Tojo
George Macready	...	Secretary of State Cordell Hull
Norman Alden	...	Maj. Truman H. Landon
Kazuko Ichikawa	...	Geisha in Kagoshima
Walter Brooke	...	Rear Adm. Theodore S. Wilkinson
Hank Jones	...	Davey - Student Pilot in Biplane
Rick Cooper	...	Lt. George Welch
Karl Lukas	...	Capt. Harold C. Train - USS California
June Dayton	...	Miss Ray Cave
Ron Masak	...	Lt. Laurence Ruff - USS Nevada
Jeff Donnell	...	Cornelia Clark Fort
Shunichi Nakamura	...	Capt. Kameto 'Gandhi' Kuroshima
Richard Erdman	...	Col. Edward F. French
Hiroshi Nihon'yanagi	...	Rear Adm. Chuichi Hara (as Kan Nihonyanagi)
Jerry Fogel	...	Lt. Cmdr. William W. Outerbridge
Carl Reindel	...	Lt. Kenneth M. Taylor
Elven Havard	...	Mess Attendant 3rd Class Doris 'Dorie' Miller
Edmon Ryan	...	Rear Adm. Patrick N. L. Bellinger
Toshio Hosokawa	...	Lt. Cmdr. Shigeharu Murata (as Tosio Hosokawa)
Hisao Toake	...	Saburo Kurusu - Japanese Ambassador to Germany
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Tôru Abe	...	Rear Adm. Takijiro Onishi (uncredited)
Hiroshi Akutagawa	...	Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal Koichi Kido (Japanese version only) (uncredited)
Kiyoshi Atsumi	...	Cook #1 (Japanese version only) (uncredited)
Harold Conway	...	Eugene Dooman - US Embassy Counselor (uncredited)
Dick Cook	...	Capt. Logan C. Ramsey (unconfirmed) (uncredited)
Jerry Cox	...	Lt. Kermit A. Tyler (unconfirmed) (uncredited)
Mike Daneen	...	Edward Crocker - US Embassy First Secretary (uncredited)
Francis De Sales	...	Capt. Arthur H. McCollum - Wilkinson's Subordinate with Stark (uncredited)
Dave Donnelly	...	Maj. Gordon A. Blake - Hickam Field Operations Officer (uncredited)
James B. Douglas	...	French's Subordinate (uncredited)
Bill Edwards	...	Col. Kendall J. Fielder - Short's Intelligence Officer (uncredited)
Dick Fair	...	Lt. Col. Carrol A. Powell - Radar Officer #1 (unconfirmed) (uncredited)
Jamie Farr	...	Multiple Characters (voice: English version) (uncredited)
Paul Frees	...	Japanese Ambassador Kichisaburo Nomura (voice: English version) (uncredited)
Charles Gilbert	...	Lt. Col. William H. Murphy - Radar Officer #2 (uncredited)
Hisashi Igawa	...	Lt. Mitsuo Matsuzaki - Fuchida's Pilot (uncredited)
Robert Karnes	...	Maj. John H. Dillon - Knox's Aide (uncredited)
Kenner G. Kemp	...	Civilian Official Seated at Meeting Table (uncredited)
Randall Duk Kim	...	Tadao - Japanese Messenger Boy (unconfirmed) (uncredited)
Berry Kroeger	...	U.S. Army General (uncredited)
Akira Kume	...	Katsuzo Okumura - Embassy Officer at Typewriter (uncredited)
Dan Leegant	...	George Street - RCA Honolulu District Manager (unconfirmed) (uncredited)
Ken Lynch	...	Rear Adm. John H. Newton - USS Lexington (uncredited)
Eitaro Matsuyama	...	Cook #2 (Japanese version only) (uncredited)
Mitch Mitchell	...	Col. Walter C. Phillips - Short's Chief of Staff (uncredited)
Hideo Murota	...	Japanese Pilot (uncredited)
Steve Pendleton	...	Destroyer Captain (uncredited)
Charlie Picerni	...	Burning Sailor (uncredited)
Walter Reed	...	Vice Adm. William S. Pye (uncredited)
John Henry Russell	...	Radio Operator with Kaminsky (unconfirmed) (uncredited)
Dan Savino	...	Sailor (uncredited)
Robert Shayne	...	Cmdr. William H. Buracker - Halsey's Operations Officer (uncredited)
Edward Sheehan	...	Brig. Gen. Howard C. Davidson - CO 14th Pursuit Wing (uncredited)
Tommy Splittgerber	...	Ed Klein - Honolulu Telegraph Operator (uncredited)
G.D. Spradlin	...	Cmdr. Maurice E. Curts - Kimmel's Communications Officer (uncredited)
Hiroshi Tom Tanaka	...	Japanese Midget Submarine Crewman (uncredited)
Larry Thor	...	Maj. Gen. Frederick L. Martin (uncredited)
George Tobias	...	Captain on Flight Line at Hickam Field (uncredited)
Arthur Tovey	...	Officer at Signing of Pact (uncredited)
Bob Turnbull	...	Desk Sergeant (uncredited)
Harlan Warde	...	Brig. Gen. Leonard T. Gerow (uncredited)
Meredith 'Tex' Weatherby	...	Ambassador Joseph C. Grew (uncredited)
David Westberg	...	Ens. Edgar M. Fair - USS California (uncredited)
Bruce Wilson	...	Pvt. Joseph Lockard - Opana Point (uncredited)
Bill Zuckert	...	Adm. James O. Richardson (uncredited)

Directed by
Richard Fleischer
Kinji Fukasaku		(Japanese sequences)
Toshio Masuda		(Japanese sequences)

Writing credits
Larry Forrester		(screenplay) &
Hideo Oguni		(screenplay) &
Ryûzô Kikushima		(screenplay)
Gordon W. Prange		(based on "Tora! Tora! Tora!")
Ladislas Farago		(based on "The Broken Seal")
Akira Kurosawa		(Japanese sequences) uncredited

Produced by
Keinosuke Kubo	....	associate producer (Japanese episodes)
Otto Lang	....	associate producer (Japanese episodes)
Masayuki Takagi	....	associate producer (Japanese episodes)
Elmo Williams	....	producer
Richard Fleischer	....	producer (uncredited)
Darryl F. Zanuck	....	executive producer (uncredited)

Original Music by
Jerry Goldsmith

Film Editing by
Pembroke J. Herring
Shinya Inoue		(as Chikaya Inoue)
James E. Newcom

Art Direction by
Richard Day
Taizô Kawashima		(as Taizoh Kawashima)
Yoshirô Muraki		(as Yoshiro Muraki)
Jack Martin Smith

Set Decoration by
Norman Rockett
Walter M. Scott
Carl Biddiscombe		(uncredited)

Makeup Department
Layne Britton	....	makeup artist
Daniel C. Striepeke	....	makeup supervisor (as Dan Striepeke)

Production Management
William Eckhardt	....	unit production manager
Stanley Goldsmith	....	unit production manager (as Stanley H. Goldsmith)
Masao Namikawa	....	unit production manager
Jack Stubbs	....	unit production manager
Richard D. Zanuck	....	executive in charge of production (uncredited)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
David Hall	....	assistant director
Shunsuke Kariya	....	assistant director
Ray Kellogg	....	second unit director
Hiroshi Nagai	....	assistant director
Elliot Schick	....	assistant director
Robert Enrietto	....	second unit director: plane sequences (uncredited)

Art Department
Tsukasa Kondo	....	art crew
Ivan Martin	....	construction supervisor (uncredited)
Joseph Musso	....	production illustrator (uncredited)
Jack Senter	....	assistant supervising art director (uncredited)

Sound Department
James Corcoran	....	sound recordist
Herman Lewis	....	sound recordist
Theodore Soderberg	....	sound recordist (as Ted Soderberg)
Murray Spivack	....	sound recordist
Shin Watarai	....	sound recordist
Douglas O. Williams	....	sound recordist (as Doug Williams)
Don Hall	....	supervising sound editor (uncredited)

Special Effects by
A.D. Flowers	....	mechanical effects
Johnny Borgese	....	special effects (uncredited)
Greg C. Jensen	....	special effects (uncredited)
Glen Robinson	....	mechanical effects (uncredited)

Visual Effects by
L.B. Abbott	....	special photographic effects
Art Cruickshank	....	special photographic effects
Gail Brown	....	miniature construction supervisor (uncredited)
Edward Hutton	....	special photographic effects (uncredited)
Howard Lydecker	....	special photographic effects (uncredited)

Stunts
Lightning Bear	....	stunts (uncredited)
Jerry Brutsche	....	stunts (uncredited)
Steven Burnett	....	stunts (uncredited)
Everett Creach	....	stunts (uncredited)
Vince Deadrick Sr.	....	stunts (uncredited)
Chad Evans	....	stunts (uncredited)
J. David Jones	....	aerial stunts (uncredited)
Charlie Picerni	....	stunts (uncredited)
Rock A. Walker	....	stunts (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Osamu Furuya	....	photographer: Japanese episodes (as Osami Furuya)
Shinsaku Himeda	....	photographer: Japanese episodes (as Sinsaku Himeda)
Masamichi Satoh	....	photographer: Japanese episodes
Charles F. Wheeler	....	director of photography: American episodes
Mal Bulloch	....	still photographer (uncredited)
David Butler	....	cinematographer: second unit (uncredited)
Thomas Del Ruth	....	assistant camera: second unit (uncredited)
Dave Friedman	....	assistant camera (uncredited)
William Huffman	....	gaffer (uncredited)
Tom Kerschner	....	assistant camera (uncredited)
Doug Kirkland	....	still photographer (uncredited)
Rexford L. Metz	....	assistant camera: second unit (uncredited)
Sterling Smith	....	still photographer (uncredited)
Jack Whitman	....	camera operator (uncredited)
Tamotsu Yato	....	still photographer (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Courtney Haslam	....	wardrobe supervisor
Ed Wynigear	....	wardrobe
Michael Butler	....	set wardrobe (uncredited)

Editorial Department
Brent Eldridge	....	digital color correction (uncredited)

Music Department
Arthur Morton	....	orchestrator
Alexander Courage	....	orchestrator (uncredited)
Leonard A. Engel	....	supervising music editor (uncredited)

Transportation Department
George Hamlin	....	picture car coordinator: Washington (uncredited)
Chris Haynes	....	driver (uncredited)

Other crew
Jack Canary	....	air operations
Kuranosuke Isoda	....	technical advisor
Tsuyoshi Saka	....	technical advisor
Kameo Sonokawa	....	technical advisor
E.P. Stafford	....	D.O.D. project officer and naval coordinator (as Commander E.P. Stafford USN)
Shizuo Takada	....	technical advisor
Theodore Taylor	....	production coordinator
Duane Toler	....	script supervisor
Maurice Unger	....	production coordinator
George Watkins	....	air operations (as Capt. George Watkins USN)
Arthur P. Wildern Jr.	....	air operations (as Lt. Col. Arthur P. Wildern Ret.)
Bill Benedict	....	pilot: B-17 (uncredited)
Robert Buckhart	....	technical advisor (uncredited)
George Burnette	....	pilot: B-17 (uncredited)
Don Clark	....	pilot: B-17 (uncredited)
Don Fletcher	....	pilot: B-17 (uncredited)
Shigeru Fukutomi	....	story consultant (uncredited)
Minoru Genda	....	technical advisor (uncredited)
Bill Groomer	....	pilot: B-17 (uncredited)
Davie Haines	....	pilot: B-17 (uncredited)
Randee Lynne Jensen	....	production assistant (uncredited)
Gaines Johnston	....	production auditor (uncredited)
J. David Jones	....	chief pilot (uncredited)
Allen Mosley	....	pilot: B-17 (uncredited)
Gary Pylant	....	pilot: B-17 (uncredited)
Dominic Santarone	....	caterer (uncredited)
Ruth Santarone	....	caterer (uncredited)
Konrad Schreier Jr.	....	technical advisor (uncredited)
Hal Sherman	....	unit publicist (uncredited)
Sam Steele	....	pilot: B-17 (uncredited)
Jim Stumpf	....	pilot: B-17 (uncredited)
Ted Taylor	....	unit publicist (uncredited)
Yasuji Watanabe	....	story consultant (uncredited)
B.H. Watson	....	army affairs coordinator (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation
• Toei Company (uncredited)

Distributors

• Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation (1970) (USA) (theatrical) (released by)
• 20th Century Fox (1970) (France) (theatrical)
• Centfox (1970) (West Germany) (theatrical)
• Centfox Film (1970) (Austria) (theatrical)
• Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) (1973) (USA) (TV) (original airing) (pan/scan)
• Magnetic Video (1977) (USA) (VHS)
• Magnetic Video (1977) (USA) (video) (Betamax)
• Fox Video (1993) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment (1999) (USA) (DVD)
• 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment Japan (2001) (Japan) (DVD)
• Svensk Filmindustri (SF) (2001) (Sweden) (DVD)
• 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment (2009) (USA) (DVD) (Blu-ray) (extended Japanese cut)
• 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment (2009) (Italy) (DVD) (Blu-ray) (extended Japanese cut)
• SF Home Entertainment (2009) (Sweden) (DVD) (Blu-ray) (extended Japanese cut)
• Fox Pathé Europa (2010) (France) (DVD) (Blu-ray) (extended Japanese cut)
• Fox Films (1970) (Finland) (theatrical)
• 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment (Brazil) (DVD)
• CBS / Fox Video (1986) (Greece) (VHS)
• FS Film (2001) (Finland) (DVD)
• Fox Video (199?) (USA) (VHS)
• Magnetic Video (????) (USA) (VHS)
• Mainostelevisio (MTV3) (2002) (Finland) (TV)
• Showtime (????) (Finland) (VHS)

Other Companies

• Vision Photography Inc.  aerial photography
• Pacific Title  titles
• Armies of the World  costumes and props (uncredited)

Also Known As:

Runtime:

144 min | Japan:149 min | UK:137 min

Country:

USA | Japan

Language:

English | Japanese

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.20 : 1

Sound Mix:

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

Certification:

Australia:G (DVD rating) | Australia:PG (cable rating) | Finland:K-12 (re-rating) (1970) | Norway:16 (1972) | Singapore:PG | Sweden:15 | Taiwan:GP | UK:U | USA:G (Approved No. 22330) | West Germany:16 (f) | Iceland:12 | South Korea:12 | New Zealand:PG | Brazil:Livre | Argentina:Atp | Peru:PT | Portugal:M/12 | Finland:K-13 (Japanese release) (2009) | Finland:K-16 (original rating) (1970)

Filming Locations:

Ashiya, Japan

Company:

Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation

Trivia:

The "one wheel up" emergency landing by a B-17 was NOT an unplanned accident during filming. The director states it was planned for and covered with five cameras to make sure it was captured.

Goofs:

Continuity: The flag that orders Japanese pilots to take off doesn't change orientation between the time that the carrier is ordered to veer to windward, and after the carrier has turned to the wind

Quotes:

[Halsey has been ordered to take his Task Force to Wake Island to deliver a squadron of fighters]
Admiral Halsey:Kim, level with me. I want a clear directive... If I run into a Jap ship, what action do I take?
Admiral Kimmel:Use your common sense.
Admiral Halsey:That's the best damn order I ever had.
[Halsey walks away, then turns around]
Admiral Halsey:If I see so much as a sampan near it, I'll blow it out of the water.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Shaft (1971)

Soundtrack:

At Last

An underestimated epic

I have not seen the movie _Pearl Harbor_; nor, for that matter, do I plan to. I do not personally care for films that warp an important historical event to suit a formulaic date-flick format (a certain travesty involving a big steamship comes immediately to mind). If I go to the movie theater to watch a historical account, then that's what I want to see. _Tora! Tora! Tora!_ is exactly that, and more; it very nearly puts you right in the middle of the conflagration.

It continues to be a source of total wonder for me that _Tora! Tora! Tora!_, a movie made nearly thirty-two years ago, is so expertly presented. The reason for this is twofold: usage of lesser-known character actors to keep plot distraction to a minimum, and the usage of vintage working ships and aircraft to keep the realism to a maximum. These two elements merge together to produce what amounts to a cameraman in a time machine filming the actual events on site.

Since this was a collaborative effort between both US and Japanese film studios, the numerous switches between scenes will give you a good look at the differences between directing (and acting) styles. I am constantly amazed at the boldness of the content for a film released in the US during the Vietnam War, and only 25 years after the Pearl Harbor attack itself; compared to the rather wooden Martin Balsam and Jason Robards, Takahiro Tamura's Lt. Commander Fuchida is replete with a charisma I would never have expected from The Enemy. The Japanese side of the tale is laid before you so well that one is sent into the minds of the people involved, a rarity for American war films. (Sometimes it goes a little bit over the edge -- Admiral Yamamoto's comment "I know [the Americans] are a proud and just people" is a mistranslation -- but the general mood is accurately conveyed overall.)

And then there is the beautiful and sometimes chilling scenery. The attack scenes themselves are eye-popping and brazen enough -- an awesome effort given the technology of the period -- but my personal favorite scene is the Japanese lead strike force's departure from their aircraft carrier. Those of you who purchase the DVD version of the movie should crank up the volume at this point. This is a piece of film that most probably can never be shot again: REAL aircraft flooring their REAL engines and taking flight from a REAL ship of war, against the backdrop of the early dawn, one after another, until the sky is alive with what looks like waves and waves of warplanes. Although the aircraft and ships used were modifed American stock, the flags, uniforms, and color schemes are all authentic... resulting in a spine-tingling spectacle of Japanese pilots plunging headlong into what was ultimately a disastrous mistake. They are depicted as human beings, as they should be.

It is an astoundingly accurate presentation of a dark moment in history for both the US and Japan, free of pretense, pandering to the audience, big-bucks megastars, lovey-dovey sappiness, and computer-generated pixels. You don't *need* any of these things to create a fantastic movie; all you need is history, which we all know is stranger -- and scarier, and more engaging -- than fiction. _Tora! Tora! Tora_ should be in every movie fan's library.