Product Description
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The Pacific is an epic 10-part miniseries that delivers a
realistic portrait of WWII's Pacific Theatre as seen through the
intertwined odysseys of three U.S. Marines - Robert Leckie, John
Basilone and Eugene Sledge. The extraordinary experiences of
these men and their fellow Marines take them from the first clash
with the Japanese in the haunted jungles of Guadalcanal, through
the impenetrable rain firests of Cape Gloucester, across the
blasted coral strongholds of Peleliu, up the black sand terraces
of Iwo Jima, through the killing fields of Okinawa, to the
triumphant, yet uneasy, return home after V-J Day. The viewer
will be immersed in combat through the perspective of
this diverse, relatable group of men pushed to the limit in
battle both physically and psychologically against a relentless
enemy unlike any encountered before.
.com
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Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg have long since shown that they
can spin a good World War II yarn. But while their previous
collaborations (Saving Private Ryan, which they starred in and
directed, respectively, and Band of Brothers, for which they were
part of the producing team) were set in Europe, The Pacific is
their first look at the conflict with the Japanese on the other
side of the world--and the two executive producers, along with an
outstanding cast, an able crew, and a slew of top-notch writers
and directors, have done a superb job. In making a 10-episode HBO
miniseries (on five discs, with a sixth containing bonus
material) that combines real events and participants with other
dramatic elements newly created for the project, the filmmakers
took a personal, experiential approach, focusing in particular on
three marines, all of them real individuals: Robert Leckie
(played by James Badge Dale), an aspiring writer who sees his
first action at Guadalcanal, falls in love while on leave in
Australia, and later suffers serious war wounds; John Balisone
(Jon Seda), who performs heroically at Guadalcanal, earns a Medal
of Honor, and is then sent home to help sell war bonds, only to
return to action at Iwo Jima; and Eugene Sledge (Joseph
Mazzello), who enlists later than the others, but not too late to
witness and take part in some unimaginable horrors (books written
by Sledge and Leckie about their experiences were used as source
material for the miniseries). Of course, no one who's never been
in combat can understand what it's really like, but through these
three, and other men as well, we get some idea of the
debilitating effects of war, both physical and psychological, and
how those who managed to survive it might cope. As Leckie would
write, "There are things men can do to one another that are
sobering to the soul. It is one thing to reconcile these things
with God, but another to square them with yourself."
A number of episodes depict the characters at home, on leave, or
otherwise away from the field of battle, but the greatest impact
comes from the extraordinarily powerful fighting scenes in which
the marines--exhausted, half-starving, riddled with malaria, and
enduring the appalling conditions (from extreme heat to
relentless, torrential downpours) of an impenetrable, unforgiving
jungle--battle an implacable, fanatical foe who would much rather
die than surrender or be taken prisoner. A sequence in Part Five,
when we're with Sledge as he lands at Peleliu for his first real
action, is especially gripping; battles at night and in the rain
at Cape Gloucester in Part Four, on Iwo Jima in Part Eight, and
on Okinawa in Part Nine are also wrenching, but really, all the
fighting sequences manage to convey the sheer, visceral terror
the men experienced. To the filmmakers' credit, a number of real
WWII veterans are on hand to share their memories, both in a
49-minute featurette on disc 6 and during the short introductions
to each episode narrated by Hanks. Other extras include a
22-minute "making of" piece and a brief but interesting
description of the cultural differences that made the conflict
between the Japanese and the Americans even more brutal than it
might have been. Kudos also go to the packaging and design of the
boxed set; the menus are easily navigable, offering a synopsis of
each episode. --Sam Graham