The Movie I Watched: Midway (2019)

I'm not sure why I wanted to see Midway. I don't have any particular fondness for war films. I didn't know anything (beyond the obvious) about this movie. And I didn't know any of the stars very well. In fact, I didn't even know that Aaron Eckhart, Dennis Quaid and Woody Harrelson were in the movie until they showed up onscreen. I did have some faint fond memories of the 1976 version. (Actually I mostly remember that Sensurround Sound. Ruuummmbbbllle.) But I went to the Redbox to pick up A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood for Jacqueline, saw Midway 2019, and went for it.

And?

Well. That was QUITE a movie. Many of the battle shots were just stunning. Actually made me feel slightly dizzy. And the director, Roland Emmerich, did a fantastic job on lots of other things as well. Funny, I've seen a few of his previous movies--Universal Soldier (1992), Stargate (1994), Independence Day (1996), Godzilla (1998), part of Eight Legged Freaks (2002)--I actually walked out in disgust on that one--, parts of The Day After Tomorrow (2004), Anonymous (2011), White House Down (2013), Independence Day: Resurgence (2016)--and I didn't think very much of any of those films.  

But what really caught my attention vis-à-vis this movie was the idea that once upon a time there were American soldiers who were willing to put their lives on the line to defend their country. One of the most striking moments in the story was when a group of pilots sets off on a mission knowing that they don't have enough fuel to make it back to safe ground...which means that they will either end up in the ocean or in enemy territory, where there is no doubt that they will be tortured before they are killed. 

Holy shit. 

It reminded me of a Clint Eastwood interview I read awhile back, wherein Clint said that modern Americans were "more of a pussy generation." I mean...we have people whining because they can't go to a bar or because they're being told they have to wear a fucking mask, you know? It made me wonder what the hell happened to us, how we became such whiny little bitches.

But then I let go of that and let myself just sink into the idea that there was a time when being an American meant standing up for what is right, for being honest and brave and true. For being dependable. For being true to our word. For a moment, it made me proud of my country. And it's been awhile since I felt that way, to be honest, and I realized that I needed that. A lot.

Here's hoping that President Joe Biden can do his part to aim us back into that way of being. Although I have to admit that Trump is the perfect president for a pussy generation.