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Windtalkers

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Windtalkers (2002)

June. 14,2002
|
6.1
|
R
| Drama Action History War
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Joe Enders is a gung-ho Marine assigned to protect a "windtalker" - one of several Navajo Indians who were used to relay messages during World War II because their spoken language was indecipherable to Japanese code breakers.

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Reviews

Actuakers
2002/06/14

One of my all time favorites.

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GurlyIamBeach
2002/06/15

Instant Favorite.

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FuzzyTagz
2002/06/16

If the ambition is to provide two hours of instantly forgettable, popcorn-munching escapism, it succeeds.

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Janis
2002/06/17

One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.

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orangehenryviii
2002/06/18

I just recently re-watched this after forgetting why I had shunned it on late night cable all these years. There is a lot of great stuff in this movie, it has a good director, a great cast- Nick Cage , Mark Ruffalo and Peter Stormare three of my faves, and the acting isn't that bad. The movie has good historically interesting subject material and the screenplay is not terrible. Yet this flick, while still fun to watch at 3AM, is a horrendous train wreck. First and foremost of its flaws is the sound. The musical score is just flat out awful. It's misplaced and overbearing. Imagine trying to watch Saving Private Ryan with The A-Team theme playing incessantly and you get the idea. Also the whole sound editing of the battles is hugely off, WWII was a battle of big guns and here it sounds like a Sunday Civil War re-enactment. Adding insult to injury, while the battle scene choreography is visually excellent, it looks as realistic as a M.A.S.H. episode because of the location. Like M.A.S.H. it's just obviously filmed in America. Sorry but my suspension of disbelief just can't be stretched into believing the well manicured landscapes of Hawaii and Southern California were the battlegrounds of WWII. The final nail in the coffin is that all the naval battle scenes are obvious stock footage. Stock Footage! Need I say more?

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Tara and Andrew
2002/06/19

This movie theoretically has a lot going for it-- John Woo can direct the hell out of action sequences, Nicholas Cage is a good/entertaining actor, and the premise of the movie holds potential. That's why it's ultimately all that much more disappointing when Windtalkers turns out the way that it does. The action is flat, the story is riddled with tired war movie clichés, and Nicholas Cage is utterly un-engaging for the first two thirds of the movie, and only becomes slightly more likable in the last third. On top of that, the movie is looooonng. It isn't like it's going to give you dysentery if you *have* to watch it like we did, but saying that is basically the textbook definition of damning with faint praise. Don't watch."Why would anyone *have* to watch Windtalkers", you may be asking yourself. That's a good question, and the answer is (in our case, at least) because it was the movie we selected totally at random in the fourth episode of our podcast, Tara and Andrew Versus The Scarecrow Video Movie Guide. You can hear our more detailed thoughts on Windtalkers by finding us on Apple Podcasts or the podcasting app of your preference, or by going directly to the episode page right here: https://www.taraandandrewversus.com/blog/2017/8/20/episode-4- windtalkers. Check it out, if you would be so kind! We try to keep things fairly concise, so even if you're sorry you listened, you won't be VERY sorry.

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Leofwine_draca
2002/06/20

John Woo's Second World War film is, it has to be said, no equal for his 1980s classic HEROES SHED NO TEARS, which pushed the boundaries of cinema whilst at the same time offering a decent war-time actioner. WINDTALKERS reunites two of Woo's previous heroes – Nicolas Cage and Christian Slater – into what is a generally effective war film, chronicling the lives of those courageous men who risked and more often than not sacrificed their lives in battle against the enemy. Woo charts the expected friendships, post traumatic stress, injuries, and racism with moderate success, and he's helped by a good quality cast – especially the unknown Beach as the sympathetic Native American hero. Cage is introspective and tormented, which is something a little different from his usual characters; I liked him, and I also liked Slater's work here immensely.But things never change and, as usual, the cinematography and action sequences are what work best in this movie. Woo offers tons of bomb-laden action and doesn't shy away from the full horrors of warfare either – there are decapitations, throat-slittings, and limbs being blown off, all shown in unflinching detail. The film does become a little repetitive as it shows Cage machine-gunning dozens of the Japanese enemy but hey, COMMANDO was a repetitive movie and still stands as one of the action genre's best. The special effects are tremendous – especially the CGI bombers flying over the lush countryside – and war fans will be left happy with what is a pretty good genre effort, and pleasingly old-fashioned in this post-modern era.

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bkoganbing
2002/06/21

I think the closest film analogy I can come to in describing Windtalkers is that of Go For Broke, the MGM classic film that starred Van Johnson. It told the story of the division formed by the Nisei of Hawaii, Japanese-Americans who fought in Europe in the Italian theater. Johnson's not thrilled with the prospect of commanding them, but he learns to respect their spirit and by the end of the film has bonded nicely with his Asian troops.In the Pacific Theater somebody got the brilliant idea to use Navajo Indian language as the code during battle. Up to that point the Japanese had broken all the codes the Marines had devised. That meant enlisting Navajos in the Marines to be given specific radio training.The catch is that these Navajos become a most valuable commodity and have to be protected lest they fall in Japanese hands as prisoners. That's where Nicholas Cage comes in. His specific assignment is to protect Navajo communicator Adam Beach and his radio. Like a defensive lineman protects his quarterback.Windtalkers unlike Go For Broke is not a story of the program itself. It concentrates on the special bond that forms between both Cage and Beach. To say Cage develops a political consciousness would be about right. By the end of the film Cage is protecting Beach for personal reasons. In fact there's a postscript at the end of the film with Beach back at the reservation that is beautiful and sublime.Of course there's enough blood and guts for any war film fan as well as the Navajo communication program is given its first test in the bloody battle for Saipan in the Pacific. Still the focus is one the respect and friendship that Cage and Beach develop for each other.Windtalkers, a really fine war film.

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