As the other reviewer said, it's a gem worth the ensemble cast. I agree. It's a good movie. I think I saw it about twenty years ago. I'm not sure. It could be more than twenty years ago. (Me with the great memory)! Anyway, it's based on war correspondent Richard Tregaskis' book about the epic, (yes, for lack of a better word, that would have to do), Battle of Guadalcanal from August 7, 1942 to February 21, 1943. About the same length of time as the equally epic Battle of Stalingrad, which was the subject of the movie Enemy at the Gates, (2002), which I also reviewed here. Guadalcanal Diary's about the first phase of the Battle of Guadalcanal, which is seen in the opening of Windtalkers, (2002). Guadalcanal was the turning point of the Pacific War on land. It was the first major battle of the Pacific War. After Midway, the Allies, including the United States, were on the offensive. Guadalcanal was the first test of a new Allied doctrine. We were going to contest Japanese expansionism. Whether or not we passed or failed, depended on the Japanese response. Fortunately, we caught the Japanese garrison with its pants down. We took them by surprise. So what would have happened if the Japanese had won? Part of the country would be speaking Japanese right now and the rest of it would be speaking German.
Review of Guadalcanal Diary
