Without sparing its viewers the main thesis of the series — the grim, atrocious reality that is war — HBO’s seventh episode of “The Pacific” confronts the audience with the most gruesome and chilling addition to the series thus far. With Hans Zimmer’s ingenious score still consistently driving the mood, this seventh part continues the narration of Sledge and the 5th Marine Division as they move into the island of Peleliu’s Bloody Nose Ridge.
The Bloody Ridge was a path that was trapped between narrow ridges, with each fortification being a nesting place for the Japanese to quickly neutralize all attempts at assaulting them due to the crossfire. The Japanese tactic was to use snipers and deadly crossfire to not only inflict maximum casualties but also to pick off stretcher bearers so that more would have to replace them to carry the wounded out of the area. In the actual battle, both the 5th Marine Division and the 1st Marine division lost about half of their men fighting in Peleliu’s Bloody Nose Ridge.
Given the high casualty rate of this major battle, “The Pacific,” with its gritty cinematography style, spares no expense at creating the reality of this horrific warfare. Men are shot, heads are blown off, Japanese soldiers are torched and injured men on stretchers are sniped off from afar. These major battles are juxtaposed with Basilone, the officer who was given the Purple Heart earlier on in the series and sent home to sell war bonds to the people at home. Basilone fights the battle for raising funds, but one can see the discontent in his eyes as he’s hyped up to be a fierce warrior who fought against savages. Hanks and Spielberg do an excellent job contrasting this discontent with the savage reality of the war itself.
Due to the large network of tunnels that the Japanese soldiers constructed all over Peleliu, the Marines are constantly bombarded day and night by ambushes from all sides. Thus, the Marines are forced to be on their guard around the clock, leading most of them to become exhausted and paranoid. This combination leads to some of the toughest in the battalion cracking. At one point, one of the soldiers inquires to Sledge something like “well if the mental stress got to that guy, who’s tough as nails, what’s to make us think we’ll be OK?” This just serves to illustrate the intense stress the men assaulting Peleliu were under.
Due to the intensely graphic nature of this episode, coupled with the paranoia and overall unsettled air about the troops, this seventh installment is by far the most intense episode yet. However, its gruesome nature does well to remind the viewer that war is not glamorous. It’s terrible and should be avoided at all costs.
