Okinawa proved to be the last and costliest battle of World War II in the Pacific – and it's a name director Peter Berg wants us all to remember.
asserted
us → prove → Pacific
His new movie, "The Mosquito Bowl," captures that battle.
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movie → capture → battle
"It is a film that I hope asks us all to look at what we ask of our young men and women," he said.
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he → hope → men
"The Mosquito Bowl" is based on the book by Buzz Bissinger, who also wrote "Friday Night Lights," which became Berg's breakout movie.
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which → base → Lights
But don't let the title fool you – it's not a movie about a football game.
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it → let → game
"No, it's not; it's a movie about the cost of war, the human cost of war," said Berg.
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Berg → say → war
The human cost of war as told through the true story of four All-American football players who volunteered for the Marines after Pearl Harbor, and reported to boot camp at Parris Island, South Carolina, which is where we interviewed Berg.
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we → tell → Berg
"They came down here and they joined the Marine Corps, thinking, Hey, we'll go win this thing.
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we → come → thing
We'll go whup some butt and win this thing, like we win our football games," Berg said.
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Berg → go → games
"Then they come across an enemy, the Japanese, who are instructed by their emperor, who they believe is a god, to not surrender."
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they → come → emperor
They first encountered the Japanese on a tiny speck of coral called Tarawa.
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They → encounter → coral
When footage of American dead on the beach at Tarawa reached the United States, the public saw for the first time the human cost of war.
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public → reach → war
"I wanted it to be as hard and as intense as I could possibly make it," Berg said.
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Berg → want → it
"I wanted it to feel terrifying, because that's how I believe it was."
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it → want → ?
Berg's immersive style of filmmaking uses real flame throwers and real explosions.
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style → use → throwers
For "Friday Night Lights," he spent a season with a high school football team in Texas.
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he → spend → Texas
For "Lone Survivor," he spent a month with Navy SEALs in Iraq.
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he → spend → Iraq
He wrote most of the script for "The Mosquito Bowl" on Parris Island.
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He → write → Island
"Just gets into your blood," he said.
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he → get → blood
"And then I carry that, I try to, onto the set.
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I → carry → set
And that's why I don't worry about the marks, I don't care if your jacket looks perfect, I don't care about the lighting; I want the soul."
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I → worry → soul
"It's a very, very powerful force," he said.
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he → say → ?
And I do feel responsibility."
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I → feel → responsibility
To understand Berg, you need to understand that his father was a Marine who served during the Korean War.
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who → understand → War
"My father's buried at Arlington," he said.
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he → bury → Arlington
"And I love my father very much.
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I → love → father
I go to his grave and I have conversations with him now.
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I → go → him
They're great, because I get to talk, and he has to listen!"
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he → get → ?
He said he'd already told his father about "The Mosquito Bowl."
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he → say → Bowl
When asked what he told him, Berg choked up and excused himself.
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Berg → ask → himself
"Very emotional for me," he later explained.
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he → explain → me
"I told him I was sorry that he couldn't see this film.
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he → tell → film
He would have loved this film."
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He → love → film
It's named after a football game played on the island of Guadalcanal shortly before the Marines shipped out for Okinawa.
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Marines → name → Okinawa
"A football game which really, to me, only matters as an opportunity for these young men to remember what's good about life," Berg said.
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Berg → matter → life
That was a big deal," said Neal McCallum.
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McCallum → say → ?
Now 99, he hadn't turned 18 yet, but he was there.
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he → turn → 18
He'd joined the Marine Corps ten days after his 17th birthday.
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He → join → birthday
"I wanted to get in the war and do my part," he said.
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he → want → part
McCallum's memory, plus a photo of the opening handshake and a mimeographed program, are all that remain of the game between two Marine regiments, each loaded with college football stars.
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each → open → stars
…and 19 more, not listed.
The Aporia
