1941 (1979)

Directed by: Steven Spielberg | 118 minutes | comedy, war | Actors: Dan Aykroyd, Ned Beatty, John Belushi, Lorraine Gary, Murray Hamilton, Christopher Lee, Tim Matheson, Toshirô Mifune, Warren Oates, Robert Stack, Treat Williams, Nancy Allen, Lucille Benson, Jordan Brian, John Candy, Elisha Cook Jr Eddie Deezen, Bobby Di Cicco, Dianne Kay, Perry Lang, Patti LuPone, J. Patrick McNamara, Frank McRae, Steven Mond, Slim Pickens, Wendie Jo Sperber, Lionel Stander, Dub Taylor, Iggie Wolfington, Christian Zika, Joe Flaherty David Lander, Michael McKean, Mickey Rourke, John Landis, Audrey Landers, James Caan, Samuel Fuller

Steven Spielberg is the uncrowned king of Hollywood. Although he was involved in the background in several films much earlier, he forced a breakthrough as a director with ‘The Sugarland Express’ (1974) – the film that made Goldie Hawn a star. However, Spielberg proved to be a trendsetter. With ‘Jaws’ (1975) he started the tradition of the summer blockbuster. After the equally successful science-fiction film ‘Close Encounters of the Third Kind’ (1977), Spielberg also started to profile himself as a producer, including ‘ET: The Extra-Terrestrial’ (1982), a film he would also direct. The war comedy ‘1941’ (1979) proves that not everything Spielberg touches turns to gold. Barely days after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Los Angeles falls prey to pure pandemonium. The fear of an imminent Japanese invasion leads to hysterical scenes and silly characters occupy Hollywood Boulevard: frantic soldiers, industrious shopkeepers, tearful girls and quarreling Nazis. There’s enough going on in ‘1941’ not to get bored, but the jokes are fired at you at such a killer pace that you’re gasping for a breather.

If things were really as chaotic in North America at the start of the Second World War as ‘1941’ shows us, it is a miracle that the Americans have kept their heads above water and have not fallen under their control. own hysteria. Anyway, Spielberg starts off strong, parodying the opening scene of his own blockbuster ‘Jaws’, starring the same scantily clad blonde. After that, however, this film takes way too much to keep it fun. A Japanese submarine led by Captain Akiro Mitamura (Toshirô Mifune) positions itself off the coast of Long Beach; an attack on Los Angeles is planned. The threat posed by this is enough to rock the entire city. The young men are eager to get themselves into a uniform. Some soldiers, like Frank Tree (debutant Dan Aykroyd), are seriously trying to pull it off, others like crazy pilot Wild Bill Kelso (John Belushi). Young Wally Stevens, who would rather dance than worry about a war, has his hands full protecting his girlfriend Betty (Dianne Kay) from horny soldier Chuck Sitarski (Treat Williams). Robert Stack stars as annoyed General Stillwell, Nancy Allen and Tim Matheson try to make love on a fighter jet, while Nazi Christopher Lee sets his sights on destroying the only thing of value in Los Angeles: Hollywood.

In terms of special effects, ‘1941’ was groundbreaking; at the end of the seventies, such a maddening accumulation of spectacle had never been seen before. But to say that they are unforgettable… no. The Ferris wheel that is on fire then remains on the retina the longest. The film earned an Oscar nomination for the visual effects, as well as for the sound and cinematography. Since 1979 was also the year ‘Alien’ and ‘Apocalypse Now’ came out, ‘1941’ was left empty handed. This film really doesn’t deserve any awards. Spielberg tries to make a smooth cohesion from a mishmash of storylines, characters and events, but can’t get it done. The screenplay, written by Robert Zemeckis, Bob Gale and John Milius (certainly not the least ones), has no resting point and is an accumulation of – often very bland – jokes. There is hardly any grip for the viewer in this bizarre roller coaster. Much more tempting than following the ‘story’ is tracking down the countless familiar faces in this film. Because the cast is certainly impressive (no fewer than 82 actors have credit in the credits). A selection of the actors in attendance and not yet mentioned above: Ned Beatty, John Candy, Warren Oates, Elisha Cook Jr., Eddie Deezen, Slim Pickens, Wendie Jo Sperber, Mickey Rourke (who is making his debut) and James Can. Directors John Landis and Samuel Fuller also have cameos.

While most of the actors really do try their best to make it work, they struggle helplessly in the merry chaos that is ‘1941’. A chaos that at times looks as if everything has been forced together to keep things going. Especially towards the end a continuous stream of climaxes, explosions and (visual) jokes is fired at you that it is no longer fun. The disorder that you have already seen pass you by has not so much provided entertainment, but more confusion. Because if you have no idea which moments are important in the plot, how do you know if they are (should be) funny? Perhaps it would have been better if ‘1941’ had been based on a central character, with a central storyline. Someone we can get to know better and empathize with. In the scenario that has now been used, the comedic talents of people like Aykroyd, Belushi and Candy are not fully utilized and that is a shame. ‘1941’ is chaos of the first order. Intended as a comic spectacle, but because the emphasis has come to lie on the spectacle and not on the humor, the film misses the point. Even Steven Spielberg can make a mistake sometimes…! Well, with his next two films (‘Raiders of the Lost Ark’ and ‘ET’) he would make up for it.