Recently, the new film " Decisive Battle for Midway " by famous Hollywood director Roland Emmerich can be said to be the hottest topic in the military fan circle. As the most anticipated war masterpiece of the year, "The Battle of Midway" did not disappoint in restoring the historical battlefield. When the steel ship "Enterprise" came towards us, when the "Arizona" battleship exploded like a volcano eruption, when the magnificent array of Japanese mobile troops appeared on the sea through the clouds, and when the US plane launched an attack in the sky, it did have the illusion of traveling through time and space, which is the biggest highlight of this film. As for the overall narrative, it is not satisfactory and a little dull, but fortunately, the combat process is quite clear. Overall, it is an American main melody with dazzling special effects but loose structure.
■The movie poster of "The Battle of Midway" is the highlight of the film, but the literary drama is not to be ignored.
As a military fan, of course, you cannot be satisfied with watching the fun and taking a scene. Based on historical facts and military knowledge, we study and ponder the plot and details of the film, and the fun is to pick and correct mistakes. "The Battle of Midway" is one of the rare World War II naval blockbusters in recent years, and naturally it is criticized by military fans. However, when examining the details of the film from a professional perspective, Emmeric's performance is a bit disappointing. Since the film was released, there have been many complaints on the Internet. Military fans with sharp eyes have picked out a lot of mistakes, focusing on weapons and equipment and combat details, such as the 20mm gun of the "Arizona", TBD with torpedoes and bombs at the same time, and the Japanese destroyer with the No. 1 gun being installed in the position of the torpedo, etc. It is very doubtful that Emmerich has found a truly reliable military history consultant in the more than ten years he claimed to have prepared the film. In fact, in addition to these martial arts, "The Decisive Battle of Midway" also did a very bad historical research on literary dramas, especially in the clips that showed Japanese decision-making. Below, the author will select a few more typical examples to explain.
Yama This official dinner
The narrative of "The Decisive Battle with Midway" began in Tokyo, Japan in December 1937. Yamamoto Irosaki hosted a banquet for military officers of the Western countries in Japan, and sent a war signal to the United States through conversations with US military officer Leiden, the intelligence staff of the future US Pacific Fleet. This arrangement of the film reflects the director's ambition. He not only wants to tell the audience the ins and outs of the Battle of Midway, but also explain the root cause of the conflict between Japan and the United States. However, the first detail error occurred in the opponent's first scene at the opening of the film.
This dinner is actually very background-oriented. In December 1937, the Japanese army besieged Nanjing, the Chinese capital. On December 11, on the Yangtze River near Nanjing, there were incidents of the British gunboat "Ladybug" being shelled by the Japanese army and the American gunboat "Pana" being sunk by the Japanese air strikes. This made Yamamoto and others who tried their best to avoid conflicts with Britain and the United States very frightened. Yamamoto, who was the sub-author of the navy at the time, went to the US Embassy to apologize. Although the author cannot be sure whether the banquet is related to the "Pana" incident, this plot does reveal Yamamoto's attitude towards the war between the United States.
■In the opening banquet clip of the film, Yamamoto Iroku wore the rank of general, which is not in line with historical facts.
So where is the error in this fragment? It is Yamamoto's military rank. In December 1937, Yamamoto Izuru, who served as the deputy navy, was still the rank of lieutenant general, and the film already wore the rank of general. In fact, Yamamoto was promoted to the rank of harem more than a year after taking over as commander of the joint fleet in November 1940. The film advanced his promotion by nearly three years. The same rank error also appeared on the bridge of the "Akagi". Mizuki, who stood beside Nakamo (identified from the subtitles), wore the rank of Colonel , but in 1942, Genda was still a Navy Nakasa and was not promoted to colonel until 1944. Of course, there is another possibility that the subtitle group made a mistake during the translation and mistakenly thought Colonel Tejiro Aoki, the captain of "Akagi", for Mizuno.
■ Natsumo Tadaichi (left) and Genda Shin (right) on the bridge of the "Akagi" are also wrong. In addition, the image of this actor is really sorry to the audience.
In contrast, the crew is much more careful about the military rank of American characters. For example, when Nimitz accepted the appointment of commander of Pacific Fleet and arrived at Pearl Harbor , he also wore the rank of Rear General, and the submarine force badge on his chest was not missed (Nimitz was born as a submarine soldier). This detail is very good, indicating that the crew can accurately restore it, but why would there be mistakes in Japanese characters?
■Nimitz was still a major general when he went to accept the new appointment. Pay attention to the two-star general flag flying on the front of the car.
Yamamoto sits alone on the streets of Tokyo
In the video, after the Japanese mobile troops successfully raided Pearl Harbor, the camera turned to the streets of Tokyo where night was covered with snow.Yama herself sat alone in a house facing the street in a kimono. She heard the American declaration of war broadcast from the radio, and said words like "awakening the sleeping giant" to the woman who served tea and water. Although this plot is very artistic, it is 100% fictional. In fact, before and after the Pearl Harbor surprise attack, Yamamoto had been on the battleship "Namen" which was anchored at the anchorage of Shizushima Island, and at noon on December 8, he led the main force of the fleet to sea to "welcome the triumphant mobile forces", so he could not appear on the streets of Tokyo in casual clothes. In the 1970 version of "Tiger and Tiger", Yamamoto said something about the war against the United States in the "Namen" war room, which is closer to historical facts.
Yamamoto talks with Yamaguchi
After the surprise attack in Pearl Harbor, Yamamoto Iroji took a car to the base camp to have a meeting with the army. The commander of the Second Air Force, his beloved general Yamaguchi Tatsume, greeted him at the door, and the two had a conversation in the corridor. Yamamoto was first dissatisfied with Tadaichi Nakamoto's failure to launch a second round of attacks, believing that it could at least paralyze Pearl Harbor for more than a year. Then Yamaguchi raised the question of when to remove Nakamoto. To be honest, I have no way to verify whether such a conversation has really happened between Yamamoto and Yamaguchi, but based on historical facts, such conversation is very illogical.
■ Video: Iroru Yamamoto and Tatsuguchi Yamaguchi talked in the corridor.
First of all, the Japanese army did not launch a second round of attacks, saved the oil depot and shipyard, and saved Pearl Harbor. In fact, the Japanese army did not consider attacking the base facilities when they initially formulated their plans. In the Pearl Harbor combat plan, the main target is the warships of the US Pacific Fleet. Secondly, in order to prevent the US military from attacking in the air, suppressing the island's airports is the secondary target. As for the second round of attacks, it is only a temporary intention. Even if the Japanese army launches the second round of attacks, the oil depot and shipyard will not be prioritized. When Nagashimo asked Mitsuo Furida, who was returning to the voyage, asked the target of the second round of attack, the latter answered that he would give priority to sweep the remaining ships, followed by the base facilities. Yamamoto was not very concerned about whether Nagashi will launch a second round of attacks. At that time, most of the staff at the Joint Fleet Command believed that they should be ordered Nagashi to continue the attack, but was stopped by Yamamoto. In fact, it was not Natsuyun's fault that he had not completely destroyed Pearl Harbor. He had completed the task he had given and returned safely with the fleet. At most, he was cautious and lacked courage. Yamamoto had no reason to accuse him. Letting Natsuyun take the blame was just hindsight.
■Yamamoto Iroru and Yamaguchi Tatsume are definitely the male lead and second male lead on the Japanese side. There are more people in Yamaguchi in terms of camera.
Secondly, Yamamoto said nothing about the appointment and removal of Nanyun. At most, he only has the power to recommend and suggest, and has no right to decide. The appointment and removal of the fleet commander must be submitted by Naval Minister and decided by the Emperor. The commander of the joint fleet has no right to decide. This can be proved by Nagamoto as the commander of the First Air Fleet. In fact, Yamamoto likes Ozawa Jisaburo, but Ozawa had another appointment at that time, so he appointed Nagamoto in the order of seniority in the navy. Yamamoto was helpless. Moreover, Nagamoto had just won the battle, so there was no reason to replace it. Therefore, as long as Yamaguchi's mind is still clear, he will not say stupid words like removing Natsumoto, although Yamamoto and Yamaguchi do not appreciate Natsumoto.
Finally, Nagamoto is Yamaguchi's direct superior. Yamaguchi criticized his superiors for his superiors at the same level. This practice is not a wise move in the army of any country. Perhaps the director wants to use this scene to show how much Yamaguchi is valued by Yamamoto, so as to lay the foundation for the image of Yamaguchi behind.
■Welcome Yamaguchi Daoshi at the entrance of Yamamoto at the entrance of the base camp, pay attention to his coat style. There is also a bug that is not easy to detect in this fragment
. At that time, Yamamoto and Yamaguchi were both wearing military coats, with golden sleeves on their sleeves and epaulettes. This outfit was not in line with historical facts. In the Japanese Navy's dress system, only large and regular dresses worn on formal occasions use eaves and gold armbands, while only eaves and eaves are used as tier-level identification marks on coats worn on daily wear. In addition, since 1938, the Japanese Navy stopped using dresses with gold armbands, while the Japanese Navy officers used dark armbands (winter suits) and white armbands (summer suits) with similar colors to the military uniforms, so after the war broke out, neither Yamamoto nor Yamaguchi would wear military coats with gold armbands.
Weird Army and Navy Meeting
After meaningfully instructing Yamaguchi to "unity to the outside world", Yamamoto entered the venue and began to fight with the Army Malu, so the biggest hidden bug in this film appeared - the strange joint meeting of the Army and Navy.
First of all, this meeting itself is fiction. Judging from the topics of the meeting, Yamamoto negotiated with the army head on the goals of the second phase of the operation, laying the groundwork for the subsequent MO operations of the Coral Sea and the attack on the MI operations of the Midway . In fact, during the decision-making process of Midway operations, the main differences occurred between the Joint Fleet and the Military Command, which was more inclined to attack Fiji and Samoa FS operations. Finally, as a compromise, the Joint Fleet agreed to launch AL operations on the Aleutian Islands while implementing MI operations. The Army initially opposed the attack on Midway because it was afraid of landing in Hawaii next, but learned that only a small number of troops were required to carry out the occupation mission, so there was no objection. At the same time, the Navy also agreed to send troops to support the Army in seizing Moresby (MO operations). However, no matter how you negotiate with the Army, it is a matter between the Navy Command and the Army General Staff Headquarters, and there is no need to let the commander-in-chief of the Joint Fleet appear. In fact, Yamamoto never solicited the army's opinions on the Midway battle.
■In the video, the head of the army and navy sat opposite each other, with the emperor's seat void in the middle.
Secondly, the specifications of this meeting were very high, with the heads of the army and navy standing on the left and right, with a seat in the middle, which was the emperor's position. It is obvious that this venue referenced the layout of the Japanese base camp's imperial meeting. When Yamamoto arrived by car before the meeting, the words "Base" on the banner hanging in front of the door also implyed that the meeting was a decision-making meeting at the base camp level. However, in fact, Yamamoto is not eligible to attend meetings of this level. The headquarters of the Imperial Front Meeting is the highest meeting for the Japanese military to conduct war guidance and major decisions. Only the Emperor, the Chief of Staff, the Navy Commander and his senior staff can participate. Sometimes the Prime Minister or other civilian ministers will be invited to participate. Even the Minister of the Army and the Navy have no right to attend and have no say. Although Yamamoto is of high power, he is not a member of the Imperial Front Meeting as the commander of the combat force.
■Historical photos of the headquarters imperial meeting, the emperor sat in the center, and the heads of the army and navy were lined up.
Finally, even if there is such a joint meeting of the Army and Navy, Yamamoto's agent arrangement is wrong. Judging from the characters in the film, the chief of the Army should be the Secretary of the Army Hideki Tojo, and the chief of the Navy is Yamamoto. However, according to the correspondence between the army and the navy officers, the person sitting opposite Tojo should be the Minister of the Navy, not the commander-in-chief of the Joint Fleet. As for Yamaguchi Tatsume, who was just the commander of the team, sitting in Yamamoto's second seat, it was even more absurd. His boss, Lieutenant General Nagamoto, did not attend the post of his immediate superior, and he was not a staff officer, but attended the senior meeting of the army and the navy, which was an usurpation.Therefore, the setting of this conference highlights the film screenwriter's lack of understanding of the Japanese Army and Navy administrative system and decision-making procedures. When later generations talk about the root cause of the Japanese army's failure in the Midway Navy Battle in , they will mention the pre-war Japanese Navy's arrogant and underestimated enemy. The most prominent reflection of this emotion is the exercise held on the Yamato battleship from May 1 to 4, 1942. This exercise was unprecedented. Commanders and senior staff from various fleets gathered on the Yamato ship and gathered in a row, so that lieutenant generals and major generals with little qualifications during meals could only go to the middle and lower-level officers' restaurants for dinner, while officers below the colonel could only eat bowls and rice on the deck like sailors. As for the homework on the picture, it has become a farce, and in the eyes of many participants, it is just a form. When the staff acting as the U.S. Navy side proposed a new situation different from the plan - very close to the actual combat situation - and caused serious damage to the mobile force, Lieutenant General Ugaki, the chief of staff of the Joint Fleet, changed the results without authorization with Yamamoto's acquiescence. On the last day of the exercise, Yamamoto asked Nagashi how to deal with an unexpected situation if something really happened. Takagan Gendashi only said: "A touch of the armor sleeve", which means "can be defeated easily in one fell swoop!" In fact, it is equivalent to having no emergency plan! The entire fleet is so relaxed and complacent from top to bottom, how can there be a reason to be invincible?
■The scene of the joint fleet holding a combat meeting in the 1970 version of "Tiger and Tiger", which is very aura.
"The Decisive Battle of Midway" naturally cannot avoid this critical event, but its handling method is too simplified, turning a fleet-scale exercise into a small military game deduction with only Nagashi and a few staff members. When the young staff members suggested that the US military might set up an ambush in advance, they were scolded by Lieutenant General Nagashi, who was in charge of the deduction. After hearing the sound, Yamamoto, who came to understand the situation, did not lightly demand to strictly follow the plan, and Yamaguchi, who followed him, turned around and left. This action hinted his dissatisfaction with the exercise. Although the basic idea of this clip is consistent with historical facts, its expression is quite simple. Another point is that it was Ugaki Chan, not Nagaki, who presided over the exercise and raised objections to the results. In fact, during the entire exercise, Tadichi Nagamo, as the core figure in the Battle of Midway, remained silent and only let the aviation staff member Genda Mitsuhiro participate. Nagashimoto opposes the Midway War from the bottom of his heart, but he knows that he is unable to oppose Yamamoto's decision, and keeping silent is the best choice.
■ In the video, Iroku Yamamoto in the "Yamato" war room, he bears great responsibility for the failure of the Midway battle.
Answer the mystery of AF
Compared with Japanese literary dramas, they focus more on senior commanders and battle decisions and plans. In "The Decisive Battle of Midway", the Chinese and American literary dramas are mainly focused on portraying the inner emotions of the characters, such as comrades, husband and wife relationships and sense of responsibility, etc., which is of course understandable. However, in my opinion, there are many such scenes, and they even split the narrative structure, resulting in slow rhythm. Moreover, this is a group movie. In addition to Best, the obvious male lead, there are many other roles. Each character is slightly expressed, and it will take up a lot of space together, which will inevitably affect the display of the decision-making and command process closely related to the battle. Finally, we see that the command decisions about the US military in "The Decisive Battle" are mostly just skimming the water, trying it out, or simply giving it up. The most prominent manifestation is that there are few shots of the main US commander Spruenz, while another US general, , Fletcher, , evaporated directly from the world. In addition, the description of some key plots is not clear, such as the famous AF mystery.
■In the video, the male lead Captain Best bid farewell to his wife An Yiyi.
The primary factor for the US military to win the Midway Naval Battle is its intelligence advantage, and determining the AF's referral in Japan's secret telegram is the key to the combat plan.The US military adopted a straightforward strategy to this end. Under the arrangement of the Pacific Fleet intelligence department, Midway Island took the initiative to send false news that the Tamsui facility had failed. Just one day later, the US military learned the same situation from the Japanese telecommunications, thus confirming that the AF was Midway Island. This intelligence deception is a masterpiece in the intelligence war in World War II, and it is expressed through two clips in "The Battle of Midway": First, the dialogue between Nimitz and Rochester shows the differences between the fleet and Washington's senior executives about AF; this time, the mystery of AF was solved through the dialogue between Leiden and Nimitz. This conversation is more obscure to show that this is a carefully planned deception, which can be felt from the tone of Leiden and the chords, but for viewers who don’t know much about the background, it will feel a little abrupt, as if it is just an accident.
■Major Leiden, the intelligence director of the Pacific Fleet, has a strong role in the film.
Conclusion
To be fair, Emmerich was able to use limited capital investment in the current film market environment to give full play to his strengths and reproduce the Battle of Midway on the big screen. His sincere courage is commendable, which is indeed a blessing for military fans who love World War II. This article interprets some plot segments in the film based on historical facts, hoping that war films with similar themes can polish the script more solidly, make detailed verification more in line with historical facts, and restore history more realistically. The author sincerely hopes that in the future, we can see more exciting and excellent war history films.
