Tora! Tora! Tora! (1970)

The story of the 1941 Japanese air raid on Pearl Harbor, and the series of preceding American blunders that aggravated its effectiveness.

Directors:

Richard Fleischer, Kinji Fukasaku

Writers:

Larry Forrester (screenplay), Hideo Oguni (screenplay)

Stars:

Martin Balsam, Sô Yamamura, Jason Robards

Won 1 Oscar. Another 1 win & 7 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Martin Balsam	...	Admiral Husband E. Kimmel
Sô Yamamura	...	Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto
Jason Robards	...	General Walter C. Short
Joseph Cotten	...	Henry L. Stimson
Tatsuya Mihashi	...	Commander Minoru Genda
E.G. Marshall	...	Colonel Rufus S. Bratton
Takahiro Tamura	...	Lt. Commander Fuchida
James Whitmore	...	Admiral William F. Halsey
Eijirô Tôno	...	Admiral Chuici Nagumo (as Eijiro Tono)
Wesley Addy	...	Lt. Commander Alvin D. Kramer
Shôgo Shimada	...	Ambassador Kichisaburo Nomura
Frank Aletter	...	Lt. Commander Thomas
Koreya Senda	...	Prince Fumimaro Konoye
Leon Ames	...	Frank Knox
Jun Usami	...	Admiral Zengo Yoshida

Storyline

This dramatic retelling of the Pearl Harbor attack details everything in the days that led up to that tragic moment in American history. As United States and Japanese relations strain over the U.S. embargo of raw materials, Air Staff Officer Minoru Genda (Tatsuya Mihashi) plans the preemptive strike against the United States. Although American intelligence agencies intercept Japanese communications hinting at the attack, they are unwilling to believe such a strike could ever occur on U.S. soil.

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Plot Keywords:

naval aviation | sneak attack | burning ship | japanese military | u.s. military | 

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Taglines:

The incredible attack on Pearl Harbor.

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Genres:

Action | Drama | History | War

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Certificate:

G

Did You Know?

Trivia

Seen in the film is a massive Japanese battleship that most assume is the Yamato, which was the largest battleship ever built and having the largest guns ever mounted on a ship. The Yamato did not enter service until after Pearl Harbor and it only fired its guns in battle on one occasion, which was in the Battle of Leyte Gulf in October 1944, during which she quickly retreated because of the presence of American carriers. She was sunk by American fighter bombers and torpedo planes on April 7, 1945, when enroute to attack the American forces on Okinawa.

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Goofs

Late in the attack, the USS Nevada steams past the USS Arizona while making a run for the sea. The Arizona is intact, with no flames. In an earlier scene, the Arizona had been hit, suffered a catastrophic explosion, and was burning.

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Quotes

Kameto Kuroshima: Genda's plan for attacking Pearl Harbor is foolproof. lt's brilliant! He stresses the importance of combat aircraft. Just think of it. We use six aircraft carriers, torpedo planes, high-level bombers, dive bombers. Zero fighters for cover, go by the northern route, use the new torpedoes, we attack on a weekend. Genda has thought of everything, refueling, the weather.

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Crazy Credits

For the U.S. version, the next to last of the main credits reads "Japanese Sequences Directed by Toshio Masuda Kinji Fukasaku" and the last credit reads, "Directed by Richard Fleischer." For the version released in Japan, the next to last credit reads, "American Sequences Directed by Richard Fleischer" and the final credit reads, "Directed by Toshio Masuda Kinji Fukasaku."

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Alternate Versions

The original release included a line by Admiral Halsey (James Whitmore) saying that after the war, Japanese will only be spoken in Hell. This line is removed from later releases.

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Connections

Referenced in Magnum, P.I.: Torah, Torah, Torah (1985)

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Soundtracks

The Star-Spangled Banner
Music based on "The Anacreontic Song" by John Stafford Smith
[Played on ship by Navy band as zeroes attack.]

User Reviews

One of the best WW2 movies ever.

Tora! Tora! Tora! has long been a favorite of this WW2 buff. Considering I have had 34 years to study and learn about the war since the film first was shown, I still maintain it is almost unbeatable in terms of realism and historical accuracy. An added attraction for me has always been it's total lack of a love interest. Unlike the recent "Pearl Harbor", T!T!T! is not complicated by any silly love stories. While by recent standards the movie may seem slow paced and plodding, the details of the events leading up to the attack is gratifying to see and actually educational. The attack action is thrilling, well paced, and in its use of models, actual planes and other equipment,is extremely realistic with few distracting anachronisms. Be aware that this is definitely not a movie to watch if you are in a hurry.

Details

Country:

Japan USA

Language:

English Japanese

Release Date:

23 September 1970 (USA)

Also Known As:

Tora! Tora! Tora!

Filming Locations:

Ashiya, Japan

Box Office

Budget:

$25,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Twentieth Century Fox, Elmo Williams, Richard Fleischer

Technical Specs

Runtime:

144 min 148 min (Extended Japanese Edition 2009)

Sound Mix:

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

Color:

Color (DeLuxe)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1