The Message: The terrifying chill of one of America's most shocking attacks, captured tastefully and beautifully, letting the haunting image speak louder than any words could.
The Truth: Stunning direction, but perhaps the "It was a Sunday morning..." and Ben Affleck's name plastered over it should have told us something was off...
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Look, we don't have anything against Michael Bay. Well, that's not entirely true. But if we're talking about Pearl Harbor (and not interested in merely repeating every criticism that's been leveled) we can confidently say that when it came to the actual attack, there are few directors who could have crafted action as chaotic and massive as Bay. But that's not what the early posters advertised.
The many posters - like the haunting one seen here - were designed to call upon the deeply personal and historically-informed accounts of December 7, 1941. Mainly the event that the words 'Pearl Harbor' have become synonymous with: an unprovoked attack by the Japanese that caught sailors and civilians completely by surprise. It's that chilling juxtaposition that lies at the heart of this poster; but not what Bay and company delivered.
What moviegoers got was a love story centered around Affleck, Kate Beckinsale and Josh Hartnett - not Bay's strong suit.
In many ways, Pearl Harbor was a colossal assault on the American public in its own right, and the lesson that taught Michael Bay not to outreach his grasp. It's a shame such a historic event had to be abused in the process, and that the tasteful, picturesque film advertised in the poster was never to be. But maybe that's a price worth paying.