In 2001, Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks produced the most brutal/realistic depiction of war ever commissioned for television broadcast, that show was HBO's BAND OF BROTHERS. Nine years later the two return with it's companion piece, THE PACIFIC.
The show follows a group of different marines as the go from bootcamp to the frontlines of the war with japan, and the harsh conditions these men had to endure. The two main characters are PFC Robert Leckie and PFC Eugene B. Sledge. Leckie, a veteran of the attack at Guadalcanal is the sort of insubordinate soldier who back chats to his commanding officers but when it comes to the crunch, he's a damn fine soldier. Sledge on the other hand is the opposite, he starts of as a good christian boy, doesn't smoke or back chat to his superiors but as events of the show unfold, Sledge changes from a boy to a man, grows a pair and like Leckie becomes a very good soldier. The third of the main characters is SGT. John Basilone, an Italian American who receives the medal of honor for his part in the attack on the Canal. He's sent back to America as a poster boy/hero to help promote the sale of war bonds but can't help feeling he should be back on the front lines with the rest of the marines.
The show is made up of 10 episodes, each one focuses on the three main marines as they try to survive the war in the pacific. It takes place directly after the attack on Pearl Harbour.
The Cast
The cast is made up of relatively unknown actors, who are all exceptional. The filming must have been hell for the actors, who shot the entire series in the scorching heat of Austrailia. The three main leads stand out.
James Badge Dale who plays Bob Leckie is great as the back chatting marine. His role requires him to be enthusiastic, resentful and show hatred and compassion for what they are sent to these pacific islands to do. During one of the episodes Leckie gets a urine infection that causes him to wet himself without knowing it. Badge-Dale plays this very well, he shows Leckie to be depressed, scared and ashamed. This episode also showed the compassion of fellow marines who, knowing about the condition don't mock or make jokes at his expense because they know that due to the conditions they are fighting in, it is very likely it may happen to them.
Joseph Mazzello, who some may recognise as Tim from Spielberg's Jurassic Park, plays PFC Eugene B. Sledge, the good christian boy from Mobile, Alabama, who due to a slight heart mermer was unable to enlist straight away. As the fight gets tougher and tougher, so does Sledge. He begins to smoke, swear and even question some orders. Towards the end, his hatred towards the Japanese army is very evident. Mazzello, who now 26, plays Slegde brilliantly. He goes from good boy to bad boy at a lesuirely pace. There is one stand out scene for Mazzello that includes himself and an injured old japanese woman, we see in this scene that what he really hates in the army, not the people.
The rest of the cast are made up of young actors, from Brendan Fletcher (Rampage), Ashton Holmes (A History of Violence) Jon Seda (TV's Kevin Hill) Rami Malek (24) and William Sadler (Shawshank Redemption), but all involved are fantastic.
The Show was shot in Austrailia and the sets that have been built are fantastic. With BAND OF BROTHERS, the sets they used for the entire show were essentially one big set that was dressed to be percieved as the play the 101st were. Im not sure if they've done it the same way with this but they were truely fantastic.
The Direction of the show is absolutely astonishing, the attack on Iwo Jima easily matches that of the opening of Saving Private Ryan, every limb, head shot, body shot, are realistically caught on camera and im unsure but this show probably has the highest bodycount of anything i've ever seen, There are some obvious nod to SPR, like a soldier wandering around looking for his blown off arm. It's shot almost documentary like. Luckily with this they've brought in the directors of BOB and it's shot very much the same way, although BOB had a washed out look to it, TP is very much a colorful show.
The Show is based in part on 3 different books, Helmet For My Pillow by Robert Leckie, With The Old Breed by Eugene Sledge and Red Blood, Black Sand by Chuck Tatum, the rest has been added for fictional and 'entertainment perpouses.
Is it as Good as BAND OF BROTHERS? no it's not but BOB was a landmark, this however serves as a fantastic and brutal companion piece to it's fore runner. Not many films were nade that concentrated squarely on the Pacific Theater of War from the Allies POV, Clint Eastwood tried with Flags Of Our Fathers but failed, but his Letter From Iwo Jima succeeded in showing it from the POV of the Japanese, Terence Malick's The Thin Red Line, although very well made, was a bit to long and abit to slow. The Pacific is so far the definitive filmed account of the battle in the Pacific.
The show comes highly recommended, and if you haven't, check out Band of Brothers first.
SHOW: 8/10
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