Title: Attack in the Pacific
Year: 1944
Genres: Documentary; History; War
Director: Frank Capra

Cast (archive footage):

• Franklin D. Roosevelt
• Winston Churchill
• Chiang Kai-shek
• George C. Marshall
• Chester W. Nimitz
• Henry H. Arnold
• Alan Brooke
• Marc A. Mitscher

Synopsis:

This official U.S. wartime documentary (AFIF No. 3) chronicles the Allied campaign in the Pacific Theater from early 1942 through Japan’s surrender in September 1945. Compiled and narrated from combat and conference footage, it highlights key naval battles at Midway and the Coral Sea, island-hopping campaigns, the Cairo Conference, and the “Day of Infamy” speech. The film culminates with the signing of the Japanese Instrument of Surrender aboard the USS Missouri, providing a concise, strategic overview of the war’s final months.

Trivia:

• Part of the Armed Forces Information Film series produced by the U.S. Office of War Information and edited under Frank Capra’s supervision.
• Musical score composed by David Raksin, combining period newsreel audio with original orchestration.
• Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2013, ensuring survival of rare frontline and POW-rescue footage.
• Public domain status stems from non-renewal of its U.S. copyright, making it widely available in archives and online collections.