Midway is a 2019 war film about the Battle of Midway, a turning point in the Pacific Theater of World War II. The film was directed by Roland Emmerich, who also produced the film with Harald Kloser, and was written by Wes Tooke. The film stars Ed Skrein, Patrick Wilson, Luke Evans, Aaron Eckhart, Nick Jonas, Mandy Moore, Dennis Quaid, Tadanobu Asano, Darren Criss, and Woody Harrelson.
The film was a passion project of Emmerich's, and he had trouble getting financial support for the film before finally raising sufficient funds and officially announcing the project in 2017. Much of the cast joined in 2018, and filming began in Hawaii. Some filming also took place in Montreal. With a production budget of $100million, it is to date one of the most expensive independent films of all time.
Midway was theatrically released by Lionsgate and Summit Entertainment in the United States on November8, 2019 and received mixed reviews from critics, who praised the visuals but criticized the screenplay. The film was a box office bomb, grossing only $126 million worldwide against the $100 million budget.
Plot
In December 1937 in Tokyo, Lieutenant Commander Edwin T. Layton, an American naval attaché intelligence officer, is warned during a state function by Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto that, because 80% of Japan's oil is imported, if the US were to threaten their oil supply then the Japanese would have no choice but to wage war.
Four years later, during World War II, following the US's decision to cut off Japan's oil supply, the Japanese launch a surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, forcing the US to enter the war. In response to the attack, naval aviator Lieutenant Richard "Dick" Best and the Air Group of the carrier are sent south but fail to find the Japanese carrier fleet.
Admiral Yamamoto, with the support of Rear Admiral Tamon Yamaguchi, proposes an audacious plan to invade Midway Island using the four available Japanese carriers known as the "Kido Butai", but the Japanese Army overrules them. In February, the USS Enterprise launches raids against the Marshall Islands. In April, after Lieutenant Colonel Jimmy Doolittle's daring bombing raid of Tokyo, Yamamoto, Yamaguchi, and Vice Admiral Chuichi Nagumo are permitted to carry out their plan to attack Midway.
In May, following the Battle of the Coral Sea, Layton, along with Joseph Rochefort and his cryptography team, use signals intelligence to intercept Japanese messages about an operation against an objective identified only as "AF". Layton and his team believe that "AF" is Midway Atoll, while Washington believes it to be a target in the South Pacific. Still, the newly appointed commander-in-chief of the U.S. Pacific Fleet, Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, remains skeptical. To prove their theory, Layton instructs Midway to send an unencrypted message stating they are suffering from a water shortage. The Japanese pick up this signal and send an intercepted message about water shortages on "AF," confirming that "AF" is indeed Midway.
Hoping to mount his surprise attack, Nimitz orders the aircraft carriers and Enterprise to be recalled from the Coral Sea and demands that the damaged be repaired in 72 hours for combat operations. Halsey is placed on shore leave due to shingles and is temporarily replaced by Admiral Raymond A. Spruance.
On June 4, the Japanese launch an air attack on Midway. Initial attempts by US land-based aircraft to strike the Japanese fleet carriers fail. However, Nagumo is shaken when a crashing American bomber narrowly misses the bridge of the in what may have been a ramming attempt. The submarine tries to attack the Japanese fleet but is chased off by the . American squadrons attack the Japanese fleet without much luck, though the attacks prevent the fleet from launching their counterstrike.
Upon spotting the Arashi from the air, Wade McCluskey correctly infers the Japanese destroyer is rushing back to the main Japanese fleet and leads his planes to follow its course. Arriving to find the Japanese Combat Air Patrol at low level due to the previous attacks, the dive bombers score several hits on the Japanese aircraft carriers Akagi, and , resulting in fires and further explosions, fatally crippling all three. The shell-shocked Nagumo is persuaded to transfer his flag. At the same time, Yamaguchi, aboard the sole remaining intact carrier, , launches a strike that succeeds in crippling Yorktown, prompting Enterprise and Hornet to launch their remaining aircraft in response. Best leads the squadron, which successfully inflicts heavy damage to the Hiryu. Admiral Yamaguchi chooses to go down with his command, as Hiryu is scuttled.