The Pacific - Complete HBO Series - Amazon Exclusive (Includes: Inside The Battle Of Peleliu) [DVD]

The Pacific - Complete HBO Series - Amazon Exclusive (Includes: Inside The Battle Of Peleliu) [DVD]

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #14 in DVD
• Released on: 2010-11-01
• Rating: Suitable for 15 years and over
• Format: PAL
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 6

Customer Reviews

HBO's The Pacific
I write this review based on my experiences of watching the whole series on Sky HD in the UK. Although from the same stable (HBO, Spielberg and Hanks) as Band of Brothers, this is a rather different beast, covering the stories of three different US Marines (Eugene Sledge, Robert Leckie and John Basilone) across the battles of the Pacific from August 1942 to end of the war in 1945. Its structure is therefore determined and limited by historical fact and the source material. I won't repeat too much of the background or general overview as that is clearly set out in the synopsis and in other reviews on this web page.

There is a great deal to be admired and appreciated with this truly epic production. The attention to historical details is stunning, although some events have been changed to help the narrative and to focus on the key themes that the writers wanted to develop. The performances by the cast are outstanding and I'm sure they will pick up a shed load of awards next year. This is also a no-holds barred production with easily the most brutal depiction of the horror of war you are likely to ever see depicted on screen.

That said, there some problems with parts of the series. The strongest elements are those taken from E B Sledge's memoirs "With the Old Breed" - see my own review of this book - which have clear story and character arcs and require less historical knowledge to follow. The two and half episodes that cover the battle of Peleliu are simply outstanding and worth the price alone. The story of Gunnery Sgt. Basilone is less well developed and feels a bit like a bolt on most of the time. That said, the 10 minutes or so of Iwo Jima action is some of the best combat simulation you'll see in the series.

War is hell but this drama is great
If you are reading this you are likely to want to know one answer first of all- is this as good as band of brothers? The simple answer is yes and what I'd like to immediately add is it's also different enough to stand up on its own 2 feet.

With Band we had a fairly military centric view of things. With the Pacific the nature of the conflict allows substantial time away from the front. Indeed episode 3 plays out entirely in Australia where the marines regroup and replenish for later battles. It's only here you see a bit of retraining there is no "boot camp" episode where you slowly get to meet the men. This allows us to see them not covered in mud and blood shooting at the Japanese in the distance but actually having some fun. This is where you start to care more for the men rather than just being in fear of the carnage.

However when the battles happen they erupt with the viciousness and realism you have seen in recent big budget war films. Bodies rip apart, guns roar and the scenes are very visceral. It's heart racing stuff and always impeccably well directed.

Realism is the goal here and at times that is hard to watch, America was sneak attacked by an Asian country and subsequently phrases like "yellow monkeys" and "dirty Japs" were regularly used and genuinely meant this is uncomfortable for the modern viewer. There's also an episode that focuses on the fact war takes its toll on young men's minds as well as their bodies and I am glad these areas were given proper attention because the series does a very good job of showing "heroes" as real and flawed human beings.

So this is pretty much a "must see" for those who want to see high quality war drama.


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