After America entered World War II at the close of 1941, Hollywood directors were "drafted" into making short films for the war effort. These directors included Frank Capra, Alfred Hitchcock, John Huston, and the most poetic, sentimental of Hollywood directors at the time- John Ford. Ford made this short film. Part of it is a political cartoon come to life. Uncle Sam (Walter Huston) is on vacation in Hawaii. It's not yet December 7th, 1941. He doesn't have a care in the world, other than his conscious (played with delicate humor by the great Harry Davenport!) reminding him of possible trouble brewing. The film also serves as a neat documentary about life in Hawaii before the war, and offers a peek into the heavy Japanese-American population at the time. Look for Dana Andrews in a ghostly bit part. History books just have the dates and places of historic occurrences. This seldom seen classic shows the mindset!
Review of December 7th
