Unlike the MPAA we do not assign
one
inscrutable rating based on age, but 3 objective ratings for SEX/NUDITY, VIOLENCE/GORE
and PROFANITY on a scale of 0 to 10, from lowest to highest,
depending on quantity and context.
This recreation of the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor
follows two friends (Ben Affleck and Josh Hartnett) during the fateful events that drew
the United States into World War II. Both are in love with the same woman (Kate
Beckinsale) and one joins the U.S. Army Air Corps while the other becomes a flyer for the
British Royal Air Force. Also with William Lee Scott, Greg Zola, Ewen Bremner, Alec
Baldwin, James King, Catherine Kellner, Jennifer Garner, Michael Shannon, Jon Voight, Cuba
Gooding Jr., Matthew Davis and Mako. [3:00]
SEX/NUDITY 4 - There is one sex scene which shows a man and woman kissing
and caressing each other and then removing their clothing; the man is seen shirtless and
the woman is in a full slip. A woman is seen in a slinky nightgown. There are several
passionate kissing scenes between a man and a woman. A man puts his hand on a woman's
buttock while they dance. Some men talk about how to pick up nurses. We see a man rubbing
his buttock, exposing his bottom cleavage.
VIOLENCE/GORE 6 - The attack on Pearl Harbor is shown in great detail:
Bombers fly overhead shooting at, bombing and dropping torpedoes on naval vessels. Men are
shown being blown through the air, falling from ships, drowning. A carrier lists and sinks
dumping men into the water and trapping men inside. A man is blown up while standing in
the bridge of a ship; we see his very bloody wounds as he dies. A man is blown up when he
thinks a bomb is a dud but it isn't. Men and women are picked off by gunfire as they
run through streets and airfields. Two airfields are attacked causing planes and trucks to
explode. A plane is shot at and explodes as it tries to take off, and other planes are
shot at and crash into towers, each other, ships, the water, and the ground. Two planes
crash killing some members of the crew and leaving others bloody and wounded. Another
bombing raid shows planes blowing up factories. A net full of dead and mangled bodies is
pulled up. Several gruesome and chaotic hospital scenes show the resulting mutilations and
injuries of the attacks: A man's neck wound spurts blood; many men are charred and
screaming. There are air battles with planes being blown into pieces and crashing; one
scene shows a fire breaking out on board a plane and the pilot is unable to eject and
eventually crashes into the water. A bullet-riddled plane is seen with a blood-covered
cockpit. A huge number of dead bodies are seen floating in the water. A dead woman is
tossed onto a pile of other dead bodies. A man is shot in the chest twice; he shakes and
gasps before he dies. Several enemy soldiers are shot and killed. There is a scene of an
airplane hangar full of coffins. There are a couple of newsreel scenes showing bombing
raids with buildings crumbling and planes exploding and crashing. Two planes play chicken
with each other in mid-air. A man is coldcocked with a machine gun butt. There is a boxing
match and two men punch each other repeatedly; one ends up with a cut on his eyebrow which
we see being stitched up, and the other has some blood around his mouth. There is a bar
fight with several men being punched in the face and tables and chairs being thrown
around. A boy knocks a man on the head with a board and knocks him to the ground. A father
hits his son across the face and knocks him to the ground. A man passes out and hits his
face on a metal table; we see him with a bloody bandaged nose. A champagne cork pops and
hits a man in the nose and it bleeds. Two young boys play in a crop duster and start it by
accident causing it to drive recklessly across a field and take off briefly. Men are shown
getting injections in the buttocks and they wince and yell in pain.
the review continues below...
PROFANITY 4 - About 6 scatological terms, 5 anatomical terms, 6 mild
profanities, a couple of sexual references, some profane insults, racial slurs and about
30 religious profanities. [profanity glossary]
DISCUSSION TOPICS - Best friends, betrayal, love, war, the death of loved
ones, grief, the risks of war.
MESSAGE - The effects of war change people's lives forever.
A CAVEAT: We've gone through several editorial changes since we
started covering films in 1992 and some of our early standards were
not as stringent as they are now. We therefore need to revisit many
older reviews, especially those written prior to 1998 or so; please
keep this in mind if you're consulting a review from that period.
While we plan to revisit and correct older reviews our resources are
limited and it is a slow, time-consuming process.
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