Midway

3 Reasons to See It: 1) The stories are true and show the incredible feats of the soldiers at Midway; 2) the acting has some really bright spots; and 3) the CGI and battle recreations were spectacular (shout-out here to the cinematography as well).

3 Reasons to Not See It: 1) Some of the acting is a little over done; 2) there are a lot of threads to follow; and 3) it can get a little loud.

Going in: I hope it will be a decent movie. I expect it'll have some good parts and some bad. I went on 11/7 with my son Zach. It'll be a war movie, lots of heroism. It risks being factual and not dramatic. On the flip side, it risks being overly dramatic and ignoring the facts.

Popcorn: 8/10. I was honestly surprised. My son and I talked quite a bit about it afterwards. He's a big WWII buff and he said overall it was pretty historically accurate (I verified this later). It's worth a buy and maybe a second viewing. Good movie. I do wish I had seen it in Dolby Cinema.

Art: 8/10. Excellent acting and incredible story. Some of the acting was a little over the top but dissipated after a while.

Acting: 5/6. The acting was pretty good. I had a hard time believing some of the characters at first, but as the movie progressed, that difficulty subsided. It wasn't the greatest, but there were some powerhouses in there that were worth seeing. Nick Jonas continues to surprise me.

Music: 3/4. The music was pretty standard. It did build in some places but wasn't totally awesome either.

Filming: 4/4. This is a beautiful movie. I'm writing this a full week and half after seeing it and I can picture some gorgeous shots.

Art Dept: 4/4. This was a period piece and very well done. The most interesting part was the recreation of the airplanes. Even though it was digital, it still looked pretty cool.

Editing: 3/4. Standard fare for editing.

Story: 7/8. This was mostly true to life. Some of the stories I thought for sure were manufactured but on a small amount of research, they were true. Some of the truists had some arguments, but as a fan and film enthusiast, it was well done.

Directing: 5/6. A thoroughly enjoyable movie and decently put together. I was surprised to read about the heroes of Midway and the amazing things that were really done as portrayed in the movie.

Production: 4/4. This was a really good movie and tale well told. Enjoyed it thoroughly.