How Many Movies Have Been Made about Pearl Harbor and Where Can I Stream Them?
Pearl Harbor is without a doubt one of the most dramatized events in history, although we haven’t had a good film adaptation in a while, there are tons of different takes on this pivotal day. Today, December 7, 2023, marks 82 years exactly since the attack that brought the U.S. into World War II.
So you may be wondering just how many movies out there are based on the tragic events that took place at the notorious naval base. Maybe you’d also like to know where you can stream these movies and whether they’re bad good or a mix of both. Lucky for you, the rest of this article will endeavor to answer both of those questions.
December 7th (1943)
This documentary directed by John Ford and Gregg Toland came out less than two years after the event; the war wasn’t even over at this point. Anyway, the film is technically a propaganda doc produced by the U.S.Navy, and a lot of the footage used in the film is actually recreations of the attack, as there isn’t actually much real footage of the event.
Most of this was removed from the film, with the cut released being 32 minutes in length compared to the original 82 minutes. The full cut is widely available, as it was placed in the National Archives, in fact, you can find it on YouTube on the National Archives channel.
Air Force (1943)
Coming out the same year as Ford and Toland’s film, this movie is entirely dramatized. While it does reflect reality, a lot of the characters and events depicted in this film stray far from what actually happened.
Overall the film was received pretty well, so if you’d like to give it a watch yourself, it’s available to rent on all streaming services, including Prime Video, Apple TV, Vudu, you name it.
From Here to Eternity (1953)
Probably one of the most well known movies about Pearl Harbor, this film stars Frank Sinatra, Burt Lancaster, Deborah Kerr, and Donna Reed as soldiers and civilians in Hawaii. This Romance/Drama focuses most of its runtime on the weeks before the attack. It all culminates with the Japanese bombers arriving — and you’ll have to watch it yourself to find out how it ends.
This film received the Academy Award for Best Picture that year, as well as Oscars for Best Director and Best Supporting Actor and Actress for Sinatra and Reed. So it’s definitely worth giving this film a shot if you haven’t seen it yet. It’s available to watch for free for Prime Video and Max subscribers.
Storm over the Pacific/I Bombed Pearl Harbor (1960)
So you’ve probably seen or heard of a few Pearl Harbor films, and they’re all from the American perspective, but this film is unique because it’s actually a Japanese film that tells the story from the point of view of a soldier who bombed the naval base. It’s a pretty interesting perspective that reflects and confronts the actions of the Japanese military, which makes it stand out amongst the countless Hollywood films that somewhat demonized Japanese soldiers.
Unfortunately, you’re out of luck, if you were hoping to watch this tonight as it’s pretty hard to find online these days.
In Harm’s Way (1965)
This movie gives us an insight into the night before the attack and then the following year, as we follow the lives of a handful of navy officers after surviving Pearl Harbor. The film stars John Wayne and Kirk Douglas, and unlike many Pearl Harbor films that came before, this film doesn’t shy away from depicting infighting in the armed forces.
The film is available to watch on Pluto TV, or you can rent it via your preferred streaming service.
Tora! Tora! Tora! (1970)
TORA! (x3) Gives us a perspective on the attack from both sides with Japanese and American directors working on the film at the same time, even the legendary Akira Kurosawa was involved for a while. The explosive drama won an Oscar for its special effects, which is fair, as there are plenty of big-budget explosions in this movie.
The film is available to rent from the usual streaming services including Prime Video, Apple TV, and more.
The Final Countdown (1980)
Out of all of the films featured so far, this might be the most ridiculous. The premise sees an advanced nuclear powered aircraft carrier travel back in time to the day before Pearl Harbor. The crew of the ship have to contend with a moral dilemma: Do they intervene and stop the attack they know is going to happen, thus potentially changing the future? Or do they stand by and allow history to play out as it should?
The plot is pretty bonkers and the film is a little trashy, but nonetheless, it’s an enjoyable watch. The best part is that it’s pretty much available to watch for free on every streaming service including Tubi, Pluto TV, Peacock, The Roku Channel, and more.
Pearl Harbor (2001)
Probably the biggest, and most explosive, most Hollywood adaptation out of all of these. This film was directed by Michael Bay, who, as we all know, enjoys his explosions (maybe a little too much). The film definitely delivers in the special effects department and the score is great too, but it falls a little flat with pretty much everything else. That being said, it was a commercial success, if you like Michael Bay movies you’ll like this one, and that’s pretty much all there is to be said about it.
Pearl Harbor is available on Max, Prime Video, and Hulu for free if you have a subscription.
Will we be seeing any more Pearl Harbor movies?
So there you have it, pretty much every adaptation of Pearl Harbor on the big screen since 1941. Whilst it looks like Hollywood has lost interest in recent decades it’s likely that at some point or another, we’ll see the legendary naval base return in another big budget film.
Anyways, if you were counting, that makes eight Pearl Harbor movies, some are great, others not so much. Of course, that’s without even delving into the war films that indirectly deal with Pearl Harbor, such as They Were Expendable (1945) or Midway (2019). And then of course, there are plenty of TV mini series and more documentaries depicting the battle as well, but we’d be here all night if we listed every single one of those as well.
Pearl Harbor is without a doubt one of the most dramatized events in history, although we haven’t had a good film adaptation in a while, there are tons of different takes on this pivotal day. Today, December 7, 2023, marks 82 years exactly since the attack that brought the U.S. into World War II.
So you may be wondering just how many movies out there are based on the tragic events that took place at the notorious naval base. Maybe you’d also like to know where you can stream these movies and whether they’re bad good or a mix of both. Lucky for you, the rest of this article will endeavor to answer both of those questions.
December 7th (1943)
This documentary directed by John Ford and Gregg Toland came out less than two years after the event; the war wasn’t even over at this point. Anyway, the film is technically a propaganda doc produced by the U.S.Navy, and a lot of the footage used in the film is actually recreations of the attack, as there isn’t actually much real footage of the event.
Most of this was removed from the film, with the cut released being 32 minutes in length compared to the original 82 minutes. The full cut is widely available, as it was placed in the National Archives, in fact, you can find it on YouTube on the National Archives channel.
Air Force (1943)
Coming out the same year as Ford and Toland’s film, this movie is entirely dramatized. While it does reflect reality, a lot of the characters and events depicted in this film stray far from what actually happened.
Overall the film was received pretty well, so if you’d like to give it a watch yourself, it’s available to rent on all streaming services, including Prime Video, Apple TV, Vudu, you name it.
From Here to Eternity (1953)
Probably one of the most well known movies about Pearl Harbor, this film stars Frank Sinatra, Burt Lancaster, Deborah Kerr, and Donna Reed as soldiers and civilians in Hawaii. This Romance/Drama focuses most of its runtime on the weeks before the attack. It all culminates with the Japanese bombers arriving — and you’ll have to watch it yourself to find out how it ends.
This film received the Academy Award for Best Picture that year, as well as Oscars for Best Director and Best Supporting Actor and Actress for Sinatra and Reed. So it’s definitely worth giving this film a shot if you haven’t seen it yet. It’s available to watch for free for Prime Video and Max subscribers.
Storm over the Pacific/I Bombed Pearl Harbor (1960)
So you’ve probably seen or heard of a few Pearl Harbor films, and they’re all from the American perspective, but this film is unique because it’s actually a Japanese film that tells the story from the point of view of a soldier who bombed the naval base. It’s a pretty interesting perspective that reflects and confronts the actions of the Japanese military, which makes it stand out amongst the countless Hollywood films that somewhat demonized Japanese soldiers.
Unfortunately, you’re out of luck, if you were hoping to watch this tonight as it’s pretty hard to find online these days.
In Harm’s Way (1965)
This movie gives us an insight into the night before the attack and then the following year, as we follow the lives of a handful of navy officers after surviving Pearl Harbor. The film stars John Wayne and Kirk Douglas, and unlike many Pearl Harbor films that came before, this film doesn’t shy away from depicting infighting in the armed forces.
The film is available to watch on Pluto TV, or you can rent it via your preferred streaming service.
Tora! Tora! Tora! (1970)
TORA! (x3) Gives us a perspective on the attack from both sides with Japanese and American directors working on the film at the same time, even the legendary Akira Kurosawa was involved for a while. The explosive drama won an Oscar for its special effects, which is fair, as there are plenty of big-budget explosions in this movie.
The film is available to rent from the usual streaming services including Prime Video, Apple TV, and more.
The Final Countdown (1980)
Out of all of the films featured so far, this might be the most ridiculous. The premise sees an advanced nuclear powered aircraft carrier travel back in time to the day before Pearl Harbor. The crew of the ship have to contend with a moral dilemma: Do they intervene and stop the attack they know is going to happen, thus potentially changing the future? Or do they stand by and allow history to play out as it should?
The plot is pretty bonkers and the film is a little trashy, but nonetheless, it’s an enjoyable watch. The best part is that it’s pretty much available to watch for free on every streaming service including Tubi, Pluto TV, Peacock, The Roku Channel, and more.
Pearl Harbor (2001)
Probably the biggest, and most explosive, most Hollywood adaptation out of all of these. This film was directed by Michael Bay, who, as we all know, enjoys his explosions (maybe a little too much). The film definitely delivers in the special effects department and the score is great too, but it falls a little flat with pretty much everything else. That being said, it was a commercial success, if you like Michael Bay movies you’ll like this one, and that’s pretty much all there is to be said about it.
Pearl Harbor is available on Max, Prime Video, and Hulu for free if you have a subscription.
Will we be seeing any more Pearl Harbor movies?
So there you have it, pretty much every adaptation of Pearl Harbor on the big screen since 1941. Whilst it looks like Hollywood has lost interest in recent decades it’s likely that at some point or another, we’ll see the legendary naval base return in another big budget film.
Anyways, if you were counting, that makes eight Pearl Harbor movies, some are great, others not so much. Of course, that’s without even delving into the war films that indirectly deal with Pearl Harbor, such as They Were Expendable (1945) or Midway (2019). And then of course, there are plenty of TV mini series and more documentaries depicting the battle as well, but we’d be here all night if we listed every single one of those as well.
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