Thank you King, you're right, he will enjoy hearing this opinion about Leyte Gulf.
Is this discussion about our opinions of a documentary series, or our opinions of each others' opinions?
Valid point Jack, I regret the snide personal jab.
I agree with those who thought The War dragged a little at times, the second episode in particular. And yes, hardships and contributions of minorities have been covered before, but I still can't see harm or exaggeration in Burns' portrayal ... this stuff happened. I knew almost nothing about Japanese-Americans serving in WWII, and didn't know the details of Sen. Inouye's heroism, or the tardy Medal of Honor. I don't see anything PC about following people from various geographic regions as a device to portray the home front.
Again about Saving Private Ryan ... I've seen it just once, and consider it among the few finest films I've seen. The story line -- which raises an apparent question about the morality and politics of sacrificing a platoon to save a single soldier -- is also a framework for Spielberg to show through his characters the need to endure hideous, mind-numbing sacrifices of war to destroy a greater evil. Hanks was perfectly cast for his character's generous and fatally mistaken decision to release the captured German. His character is a compassionate American Everyman in a world where compassion can be naive weakness, and the consequences of failing to recognize and relentlessly destroy evil are fatal.
I didn't really mean that say SPR is pro-war -- just meant that it makes a compelling case that despite the awful price, some wars are necessary.
