As someone very knowledgeable about the subject, I was somewhat disappointed. Whether it was the wrinkled uniforms, the painful dialogue, the over-the-top dramatics and exaggerated explosions (hey, it's Emmerich!)... it was clear the film was not made for people like me who know the details and the characters very well.

The rating depends greatly on the target audience. It's clear this film was made for a younger audience, and as such, it does a very good job of conveying the history quite accurately. It's a lot to take on with a 2:20 movie (complete with a 6-month summary of events leading up to the title battle) and it does a fine job of that.

Correct history of this great nation tragically just isn't taught anymore, so I heartily applaud any effort to do so. I just wonder if younger audiences have any desire to learn it. So if I'm rating from that perspective, it jumps up a few points.

I just wish a little more care with the details and script had been taken to leave the older audience satisfied from our knowledge level.

Critics are trashing this film, I went into it skeptical. After, I'm not so sure why. They tell a simplified story of the events leading up to, and eventually the battle of midway. You get to see two sides of life, the Japanese and the American forces. The script is fine, acting is pretty good in my opinion as well (shout out to Dennis Quaid, he is a great salty kinda guy). CGI was not that bad, especially for fast paced scenes. Only complaint is it is a bit long, which I understand due to how much they wanted to include. But there were 2-3 times I thought it might end, but there were still a few minutes left. In the end, a solid war movie that, in my opinion, does a great job showing some brutality of war, in addition to brothership and slice of life of the time. A solid film to honor the brave men and women that died for a better future.