Midway

This action flick for guys reliably delivers all of the classic elements of Emmerich movies – superb casting, elaborate composition and over-the-top American pathos at the end. Unfortunately, the storyline is confusing – the strategies discussed over the maps and sometimes the continuity of the action scenes make no sense. Ideologically, it’s also pro-China, as without a Chinese investment, this film would probably never have been made (it could never attract enough moviegoers to pay for its technical execution). The digital aspect is excellent, especially in comparison with the recent (sixth) Terminator. (11/26/2019)

The ideal definition of a three-star film. You watch the central battle – an aggregation of pixels and an abundance of CGI-rendered frames – and catch yourself thinking: I’d rather play computer games than passively watch them. But then you get used to it, and ultimately you’re prepared to admit that the way in which the story is told does, rather surprisingly, have the qualities of an acceptable historical drama. We’re told a rather sparse backstory, which is for the better, and with the exception of the ending, Emmerich doesn’t force unpleasant pathos down our throats, so the net result is noticeably better than (if you allow the comparison) Bay’s Pearl Harbor. The latter was primarily a chick flick, whereas this is a sober and reasonable take on a major event of World War II in the Pacific theater. Nothing groundbreaking, but not a catastrophe either; I’d say Emmerich passes with flying colors. PS: Ed Skrein, well-known for being typecast as a villain, shows he can play nice guys too, when he wants to. Except when he’s chewing like a ruminant (at the beginning of this film) – then you want to punch him in the face :o). (02/23/2020)

Roland Emmerich directed a film with big battles in which the visual effects occasionally are quite dodgy, but otherwise it's an epic spectacle. It's just that when they are not fighting, Midway is pretty rubbish. Mostly because of poor character work, a dysfunctional attempt to evoke some emotion and pathos, and an inability to make interesting characters out of twenty sailors, pilots, and officers. Fans of big war films won't be offended by Midway, but don't expect anything exceptional either. (11/07/2019)

I would never have believed that I would ever write this, but... Good old Bay's Pearl Harbor. Midway is an example of horrible non-art, even by Emmerich's standards. And that surprisingly includes the technical aspect, which usually saves him. I don't remember any film with such horrible dialogue, such poor acting by excellent actors (let alone non-actors). CGI is overused and lame here. And so there are common scenes where the actors do not fit into the picture or when the ships/aircraft/islands/clouds in the background are so scattered and blurry that even many retro movies would be ashamed of it. An unbelievable goof for a film that is nothing but effects. When they are no longer babbling and saying one cliché after another with a straight face, then there is action. Frequent, excessive, dumb. It's closer to X-Wings battling TIE Fighters than anything historical that would be at least partially rooted in reality and the laws of physics. There is so much extreme craziness going on here all the time that if someone put a reverse gear on the plane and just flew backwards, it wouldn't seem out of place at all. That is,  action that's unwatchable both visually and due to its content and uncharismatic characters from the ranks of the supremely unlikable. Compared to Emmerich´s other movies, it's not a clear guilty pleasure, because this time it's not (un)intentionally stupid, it's just desperately unwatchable and annoyingly long. The only slightly decent storyline is the one involving Yamamota/Nimitz, but that's all. (09/25/2020)

After the failure of Independence Day: Resurgence, Roland Emmerich restores his reputation and serves up a decent war film that won't make a dent in the world, but thanks to familiar faces, dynamic pace and almost uninterrupted action, it's sure to entertain in the cinema, as long you don’t think too much. Of the actors, Ed Skrein stands out the most as the bold and brash pilot who steals most of the scenes for himself, but Luke Evans, Woody Harrelson, Patrick Wilson and Aaron Eckhart are also good, so there are more than enough familiar faces. It's just a pity that they don't work too well with emotions, because there are so many characters that it's almost impossible to form a relationship with any of them. The action is very decent albeit 80% through a green screen, but if you don’t mind a CGI orgy you will get over it. I don't think plane crashes and aerial gunfights have ever been so entertaining and gripping, and I was entertained by the behind-the-scenes of the Japanese. There hasn't been a WW2 war film in the cinema this year, so fans of the genre should be grateful and not hesitate to go. 75% (11/08/2019)

A rather terse and confusingly conceived story, which does not lack the typical Emmerich trademarks in the form of a first class CGI fest. At the same time, Midway lacks the sense of composition and clarity of the action scenes of Michael Bay’s Pearl Harbor. Fortunately, this time Roland shows pathos only at the end, and then only to a degree that is easily digestible. So bottom line, as long as the viewer can survive the rather unentertaining structure of the military moves on the chessboard, the bunch of guys in uniforms is pretty cool and the visual effects, although too artificial in places, are quite watchable. (02/25/2020)

I was kind of looking forward to a war movie with a classic cut, a big gimmicky spectacle to provide entertainment and escape, and not be completely stupid at the same time. Well, unfortunately, what I got was a very long and mediocre bore with a crappy script that didn't give a damn about almost any of the characters, overacting actors, and some surprisingly stripped-down stunts (they looked like backdrops during the attack on Pearl Harbor) and action scenes that only had juice here and there. Forget humor or anything fresh altogether, this is as much a disappointment from my beloved Roland Emmerich as 10,000 BC was the other day. Bay's Pearl Harbor is an order of magnitude better, though it's no gem either. (11/07/2019)

A portrait of a major military event composed in a typical Emmerich fashion, where, thanks to the incredibly complex dosing of information, the viewer never loses their bearings and celebrates a famous victory with a lot of characters, who, thanks to the likeable faces of the actors, manage to generate sincere sympathies. The first half is actually very good and sweeping, but then the pace gradually starts to grind and by the end its only played for effect, without the epic flights through almost certain death leaving anything deep to the viewer. But Emmerich has a very firm hand and it’s very watchable, though at the same time confirms that he’s better when he takes things more lightly, as proven, among others, by the most entertaining scene with John Ford. 70% (04/01/2020)

Looking back on my reviews of Roland Emmerich's films, I've given all the pieces I've seen three stars. His films should be seen (at least) for the first time in the cinema, otherwise the inherent audiovisual charm is lost and the shallow dialogue and simple script come to the surface. Midway is a shining example. All the action scenes looked good on the big screen and were mostly clear and believable - I couldn’t breath during the raids on the battleships. For an ahistorical person like me, the film gives an overview of a few key events of WWII. I can't say that I found any of the characters unlikeable, but at the same time I can't say that I strongly sympathized with any of them. Midway will never become an icon of the war genre, but it doesn't offend and it works in the cinema. (11/12/2019)

I hoped that the Americans would finally come to their senses and make a proper war film. CGI is already at such a high level that it should no longer be a problem (there is no need to create models of historical technology, etc.), but it was no good. Well, the attack on Pearl Harbor and the following action scenes were a nice surprise, but Midway didn’t work out so well. There were only four B-26 Marauders on the atoll all of which were the torpedo variant. I don't understand why no F4F fighters were generated, it looked really weird this way. If there’s anything that went well, it was the casting. If someone had told me before watching the film that Woody Harrelson would play Admiral Nimitz, I would have thought they were kidding. Having seen it with my own eyes, I’m amazed. I would like to give a higher rating, but it really pisses me off that the Americans aren’t able to portray the important moments of their short history more realistically. (03/08/2020)