The Battle of Midway
Encyclopedia
The Battle of Midway is a 1942 American documentary film
short
directed by John Ford
. It is a montage of color footage of the Battle of Midway
with voice overs of various narrators, including Donald Crisp
, Henry Fonda
, and Jane Darwell. This production is one of the rare pictures wich has been performed with the Sensurround
special effects system.
at work on the island, and a female voice over. The female voice over takes the personality of a middle aged woman from Springfield, Ohio
, who is a mother-type figure pointing out how she recognizes such and such boy from her home town. Then stock footage of the boys' mothers and sisters back home is introduced.
Abruptly the narrative turns to the battle itself with approximately five minutes dedicated to the defense of the island, the naval battle, and the aftermath. At the end the various known Japanese losses are shown (four aircraft carriers, battleships, aircraft etc.) and then brushed over with red paint.
, and was one of four winners of the inaugural, 1942 Academy Award for Best Documentary
.
John Ford's handheld, 16mm footage of the battle was captured totally impromptu. He had been in transit on the island, roused from his bunk in the BOQ
(bachelor officers' quarters) by the sounds of the battle, and started filming. Ford was wounded by enemy fire while filming the battle.
Documentary film
Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...
short
Short subject
A short film is any film not long enough to be considered a feature film. No consensus exists as to where that boundary is drawn: the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of 40 minutes or less, including all...
directed by John Ford
John Ford
John Ford was an American film director. He was famous for both his westerns such as Stagecoach, The Searchers, and The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, and adaptations of such classic 20th-century American novels as The Grapes of Wrath...
. It is a montage of color footage of the Battle of Midway
Battle of Midway
The Battle of Midway is widely regarded as the most important naval battle of the Pacific Campaign of World War II. Between 4 and 7 June 1942, approximately one month after the Battle of the Coral Sea and six months after Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor, the United States Navy decisively defeated...
with voice overs of various narrators, including Donald Crisp
Donald Crisp
Donald Crisp was an English film actor. He was also an early motion picture producer, director and screenwriter...
, Henry Fonda
Henry Fonda
Henry Jaynes Fonda was an American film and stage actor.Fonda made his mark early as a Broadway actor. He also appeared in 1938 in plays performed in White Plains, New York, with Joan Tompkins...
, and Jane Darwell. This production is one of the rare pictures wich has been performed with the Sensurround
Sensurround
Sensurround is the trademark name for a process developed in the 1970s by Cerwin-Vega in conjunction with Universal Studios to enhance the audio experience during film screenings...
special effects system.
Plot
The film begins with a male narrator explaining where Midway Island is and its strategic importance. About five minutes into the film the format changes somewhat, with more leisurely pictures of the GIsGI (term)
G.I. is a noun used to describe members of the United States armed forces or items of their equipment. The term is now used as an initialism of "Government Issue" , but originally referred to galvanized iron....
at work on the island, and a female voice over. The female voice over takes the personality of a middle aged woman from Springfield, Ohio
Springfield, Ohio
Springfield is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Clark County. The municipality is located in southwestern Ohio and is situated on the Mad River, Buck Creek and Beaver Creek, approximately west of Columbus and northeast of Dayton. Springfield is home to Wittenberg...
, who is a mother-type figure pointing out how she recognizes such and such boy from her home town. Then stock footage of the boys' mothers and sisters back home is introduced.
Abruptly the narrative turns to the battle itself with approximately five minutes dedicated to the defense of the island, the naval battle, and the aftermath. At the end the various known Japanese losses are shown (four aircraft carriers, battleships, aircraft etc.) and then brushed over with red paint.
Production notes
The film runs for 18 minutes, was distributed by 20th Century Fox20th Century Fox
Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation — also known as 20th Century Fox, or simply 20th or Fox — is one of the six major American film studios...
, and was one of four winners of the inaugural, 1942 Academy Award for Best Documentary
Academy Award for Documentary Feature
The Academy Award for Documentary Feature is among the most prestigious awards for documentary films.- Winners and nominees:Following the Academy's practice, films are listed below by the award year...
.
John Ford's handheld, 16mm footage of the battle was captured totally impromptu. He had been in transit on the island, roused from his bunk in the BOQ
BOQ
BOQ is an abbreviation for:* Bachelor Officer Quarters, which are buildings on U.S. Military bases for quartering commissioned officers .* Bitter Old Queen, humorous gay slang...
(bachelor officers' quarters) by the sounds of the battle, and started filming. Ford was wounded by enemy fire while filming the battle.
See also
- List of American films of 1942
- List of Allied Propaganda Films of World War 2
- MidwayMidway (film)Midway is a 1976 war film directed by Jack Smight and produced byWalter Mirisch from a screenplay by Donald S. Sanford. The music score was by John Williams and the cinematography by Harry Stradling, Jr...