I miss the old movies from the 60s and early 70s. My dad
loved them, we'd watch them together and I actually learned a lot of military history from watching
those Saturday reruns (some of that history I admit had to be corrected). One of those
was the 1976 movie Midway with Charlton Heston and Henry Fonda. This was
on our list of classic war movies, so I bought a copy on DVD for my dad a few
years ago. When the new version of Midway came out in 2019 with Woody Harrelson
as Admiral Nimitz, I had to see how it compared, so I added a copy of that
version to my collection.
Which version is better you ask? Tough question. Right off
the top, I’ll tell you I liked the older version better. But for the life of my
I couldn’t figure out why. Is it because the Charlton Heston version used real aircraft
and historical footage? (the onboard carrier scenes were filmed on the USS
Lexington.) Maybe the computer-generated battle scenes in the 2019 version were
a turnoff. That and a bit of overacting? Maybe? Just a little? Amazon customers
couldn’t help. Both movies are well received with thousands of reviews. Well,
maybe we should ask which one was more historically accurate. And that’s where
the book comes in.
I admit that I am not nearly as familiar with WWII naval
history as I am with the land-based battles. I did not know a great deal about the Battle of Midway. When I don’t know about something,
I can’t just take Wikipedia’s word for it. I have to go find a book. No disrespect
to Wikipedia, it’s a great resource for background information. I just have to
have a book. I chose “The Battle of Midway” by Craig L. Symonds. The book was really
good. I’m not the only one who thinks so, it has 4.7 stars on 590 reviews. The
book begins with Admiral Chester Nimitz taking over as CincPac in the days
following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. We’re given all of the
background we need that leads us up to the battle, including the Battle of the
Coral Sea, the breaking of Japanese codes, and the Doolittle Raid. The book
then provides a blow by blow telling of the Battle of Midway that occurred just
six months after Pearl Harbor. I enjoyed reading it.
Which movie was more historically accurate? First, ignore
the storyline in the first movie involving Heston’s fictional character and his
son. Then I would say with the broad-brush strokes they are both historically
accurate. But I have to admit that when it comes to details and character
portrayals, the 2019 Woody Harrelson version beats out the 1976 version. For
example, Joe Rochefort, the officer in charge of breaking one of the Japanese
codes that were so instrumental in the American victory was portrayed in the
1976 movie as eccentric and unconventional. That is not a true description of
this brilliant officer, and he was more accurately depicted in the 2019 movie. As
it turns out, the 2019 movie did a much better job of showing the real men who
played integral parts in the battle. McClusky really did damage his lungs with
a faulty air tank, and Admiral Yamaguchi did, in fact, choose to go down with the
Hiryū. As it turns out, it seemed like the 2019 movie of
Midway was based on Symonds’ book.
I know I haven’t helped you choose just one of these. But
hey, while you are socially distancing yourself you’ve got time to enjoy all
three. My recommendation, as always, is to read the book first. 😉
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