December 7th

This is another war documentary by Ford, obviously detailing the nefarious 1941 Japanese attack on Pearl Harbour that saw the U.S. finally enter WWII. Ironically, the film was originally made as a feature (running 82 minutes) but was heavily censored by the authorities – despite having been commissioned by President Roosevelt himself! – to the point that it was reduced to a 34-minute short, entered in the Academy Award category for Best Documentary Short and winning the Oscar! For the record, only the edited version was released among the extras on Fox's BECOMING JOHN FORD (2007) DVD and, while I managed to acquire the full-length edition off "You Tube", I opted to only watch the shorter print in view of its being Oscar season!

Anyway, this makes a much better attempt to tell the whole story than THE BATTLE OF MIDWAY (one imagines the feature being that more comprehensive in this regard!), and only resorts to mawkishness – albeit movingly done regardless – towards the end i.e. when the fallen soldiers 'introduce' themselves to the audience. Needless to say, the Japanese side is depicted in strictly caricatured terms (which was the accepted norm for the duration of the conflict, seen also in contemporary cartoons!)…but, while a Japanese civilian (sympathizing with the invasion) is interviewed, we also get to see how other naturalized Orientals hid evidence (not just store-signs but the Asian calligraphy itself!) of their old country in shame. Again, a number of stars lend their services to provide the accompanying narration: I recognized Walter Huston's voice in this streamlined copy but, reportedly, the likes of Harry Davenport and Dana Andrews were also involved.

Docudrama about the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7th, 1941, that led to the US entering World War II. The version I have seen twice now on TCM is the unedited 82-minute version. The shorter version, which runs 34 minutes, is the one that won the Oscar for short subject documentary. The first part of the film is amusingly corny. Uncle Sam (Walter Huston) is vacationing in Hawaii, where he is interrupted by his conscience (Harry Davenport) the day before the attack. They discuss the history of Hawaii, the loyalty of Japanese-Americans, and America's complacency. From there we have the Pearl Harbor attack and the entry into the war. These scenes are a combination of stock footage and recreations shot by famed cinematographer Gregg Toland. It's not hard to differentiate between the two. Dana Andrews plays the ghost of a sailor who died at Pearl Harbor and Paul Hurst plays the ghost of a soldier who died in WWI. The credit for this film seems to go to John Ford, although it appears all he may have done is edit down Gregg Toland's longer version. I haven't read up on the film's history so I can't say for sure. I will say that very little about this screamed John Ford to me, stylistically speaking. Like I said, it's corny and maybe a little offensive if you want it to be, but I found it pretty fascinating. It's a nice window into the mindsets of Americans at the time and how they felt about these issues and events. The attack itself is excitingly recreated. WWII buffs should find a lot to chew on here. Everybody else, how you'll feel about it likely depends on the baggage you bring with you. Some will like it, some will hate it, and some will like to hate it. Hopefully most of you will find it interesting and your blood pressure will be unaffected.

John Ford's 1943 docu-drama, "December 7th," is an interesting piece of history in its own right. In hindsight, we can see what Ford must have thought when he pulled together this film for the Navy and War Department. Clearly, it had an important purpose and value for that time. And, just as clearly to me, it had more than one message. Remember, up until Pearl Harbor, there had been divergent states of mind in the U.S. about the war.

So, this film set out to wake Americans up and get people to stop to think. It gave us lots of information about Hawaii. Most Americans probably knew of the islands only as a great place to vacation on the beach. How many non-residents knew much about Hawaii or its people at that time? Who knew that 25 percent of the population was of Japanese descent? Or that 122,000 of the 157,000 Japanese then in Hawaii were American citizens? And remember, that was some two decades before Hawaii was to become a state. For that matter, how many people today know much about Hawaii's past up to the start of World War II? I know I had no inkling of much of this data before seeing this film, and then checking some historical references.

This film gives us a broad picture of the Japanese Americans in Hawaii. We see and learn about their businesses, their beliefs, their culture, and their history. The film presents this in a pro and con format between the two main characters. The message seemed clear. Americans should stop to think, and not jump to conclusions. The film should lead viewers to be more open-minded about the Japanese Americans in general. But, also it should help viewers see the need for vigilance by the government because of known Japanese espionage. By this time, we had considerable experiences with the fifth column efforts by Nazi supporters in the eastern U.S. They tried to promote confusion and distrust among the populace and hinder U.S. support for the Allies in the war. Today, we can look at this film and better understand the time, place, moods, fears and concerns of the nation.

My DVD with this film also has some other interesting extras. It has two movie newsreels, a video with interviews when the Ford film was first shown in Japan in 1995, and Frank Capra's 1945 documentary on Japan, "Know Your Enemy."

A cameraman assigned to Honolulu at the time shot the first Universal newsreel of Pearl Harbor. But, its report is quite inaccurate in places. It says that American Army and Navy planes helped repel a fourth wave of attackers. Such guesswork never should have been used by news sources. As we soon learned, the Japanese attack had wiped out the Army airplane force. And, there were no Navy planes because the carriers were out to sea. In another part, a narrator says that the Japanese attack was planned to take place when the carriers were gone. Again, we know that's not true, as the facts later attested. The Japanese planned their attack mainly to knock out U.S. Naval air power as the core of the U.S. naval forces. That would give them a big advantage in the Pacific, and they were surprised to find out that the carriers weren't in port. Later films, such as "Tora, Tora, Tora," give accurate historical accounts of December 7th, including good accounts from the Japanese side.

Finally, the Capra documentary, "Know Your Enemy," was on this DVD. This is an interesting example of a propaganda film. It was produced apparently to show to Americans going to serve in the Pacific in 1945. Some criticize the narrator's tone and derogatory comments in places. I agree. Propaganda should give information truthfully and without racial or cultural slurs. That said, this film gave more interesting – and accurate – information about Japan. Its history, people and culture of the last two centuries before Pearl Harbor would help Americans understand the why and how of Japan's drive for conquest.

One can see some clear similarities between Japan and Germany – in their efforts to arouse the people to support war and conquest. Several news film clips taken in Japan show masses of people being rallied for support of Japan's efforts. The similarity to Nazi Germany is uncanny. One also can see how the nationalistic rallies in this film could lead so many Japanese soldiers to think lowly of other people and be able to treat prisoners, civilians and even women and children so brutally..

Ford's film, "December 7th," is shown in its uncensored and censored parts – noted on the screen as it plays. This is an excellent piece of history in its own right. Anyone interested in World War II, and anyone who wants to know and understand the history of that time better, should see this film. The extras that are on this DVD are also of historical value.

After Pearl Harbor, Gregg Toland filmed a propaganda movie for the navy about the attack. The military and John Ford would reshape the 82 min film down to a 34 min short which would win the 1944 Oscar for documentary short. In recent years, the full length film is recovered and released.

Uncle Sam is eagerly promoting Hawaii as a peaceful vacation spot. Mr. C questions him and their conversation reveals the history of Japanese immigration onto the island. While Uncle Sam shows them as patriotic Americans, Mr. C counters with suspicions of their true loyalties. Uncle Sam is shown to be naive in his beliefs as Mr. C uses a false story to illustrate the disloyalty of some of the Japanese population cooperating with the Japanese Empire and the German Nazis. Uncle Sam is shown as a weak-kneed disbeliever until the attack wakes him from his sleep proving him wrong. Of all the hokey propaganda takes, the most effective is the voices from the soldiers' graves. It really makes it a war for all Americans.

The fictional espionage story reminds me of the old industrial educational films with bad acting. On the hand, the attack recreations blend very well with real footage of the attack. I can see why so much of it was cut while the leftovers would be award winning. Overall, there is great craftmanship in the battle while the preceding espionage story is poorly acted and problematic as a documentary endeavor. It does show how easily fear can be whipped by against the local Japanese population and explain the popularity of the internment decision. As a time capsule, it shows how a false narrative can easily push people into the wrong conclusions. As a film, it shows great skills in combat recreation.

After America entered World War II at the close of 1941, Hollywood directors were "drafted" into making short films for the war effort. These directors included Frank Capra, Alfred Hitchcock, John Huston, and the most poetic, sentimental of Hollywood directors at the time- John Ford. Ford made this short film. Part of it is a political cartoon come to life. Uncle Sam (Walter Huston) is on vacation in Hawaii. It's not yet December 7th, 1941. He doesn't have a care in the world, other than his conscious (played with delicate humor by the great Harry Davenport!) reminding him of possible trouble brewing. The film also serves as a neat documentary about life in Hawaii before the war, and offers a peek into the heavy Japanese-American population at the time. Look for Dana Andrews in a ghostly bit part. History books just have the dates and places of historic occurrences. This seldom seen classic shows the mindset!