The Pacific (2010)

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Directors: Jeremy Podeswa, Tim Van Patten, David Nutter, Carl Franklin, Tony To, Graham Yost

Writers: Bruce C. McKenna, Robert Schenkkan, Laurence Andries, Michelle Ashford, George Pelecanos, Graham Yost; based in part on the book "Helmet for My Pillow," by Robert Leckie and "With the Old Breed," by Eugene B. Sledge, with additional material from "China Marine," by Eugene B. Sledge and "Red Blood, Black Sand," by Chuck Tatum

Stars: James Badge Dale, Joseph Mazzello, Jon Seda, Ashton Holmes, Josh Helman, Rami Malek, Martin McCann, Keith Nobbs, Toby Leonard Moore



Three Marines (James Badge Dale, Joseph Mazzello, and Jon Seda) go to the Pacific War with the 1st Marine Division and participate in the battles at Guadalcanal, Cape Gloucester, Peleliu, Okinawa, and Iwo Jima. 



Based on memoirs by the men who are featured as central protagonists, this epic miniseries depicts both the horrors of war and the trauma it inflicts on the soldiers who fight it. 



The most involving and harrowing episodes involve the combat in steaming jungles on remote islands against an enemy who will not surrender, but time is also spent examining life away from the front as veterans struggle to reconcile themselves to civilian life and deal with their PTSD (which was not recognized as such then). 



Rami Malek deserves special mention for his portrayal of Snafu, a man profoundly disturbed and twisted by his experiences. 



This is an extraordinary film.








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