In the days after the attack on Pearl Harbor, panic grips California, where a military officer leads a mob chasing a Japanese sub.
Practical Effects
The house destruction scene cost more than most films' entire budgets.
Acting
John Belushi's unhinged pilot performance deserves a thesis.
Direction
Spielberg proving he can spend $35M on pure anarchy.
Director
Steven Spielberg
Dan Aykroyd
Sgt. Frank Tree
Ned Beatty
Ward Douglas
John Belushi
Capt. Wild Bill Kelso
Lorraine Gary
Joan Douglas
Murray Hamilton
Claude Crumn
Christopher Lee
Capt. Wolfgang von Kleinschmidt
Tim Matheson
Capt. Loomis Birkhead
Toshirō Mifune
Cmdr. Akiro Mitamura
Warren Oates
Col. 'Madman' Maddox
Robert Stack
Maj. Gen. Joseph W. Stilwell
Treat Williams
Cpl. Chuck 'Stretch' Sitarski
Nancy Allen
Donna Stratton
Lucille Benson
Gas Mama (Eloise)
John Candy
Pvt. Foley
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
The original cut ran 146 minutes; Spielberg's preferred version was buried by Universal after the theatrical bomb.
This flop directly led Spielberg to *Raiders*—he needed to prove he could still entertain without bankrupting studios.
US
