1941 Analysis

Steven Spielberg's World War 2 spoof film "1941" is a phenomenal watch that has a star studded cast. It focuses a lot on the crazy fear that Americans had about Japanese peoples. Steven Spielberg did many things to make this film very enjoyable. Some of the things that he did includes mimicking character characteristics of other World War 2 films and created a goofy incompetent enemy.

In many ways, Spielberg mimicked other World War 2 films. Many characters he uses in the movie are very stereotypical of other film characters of the war genre. John Belushi plays a crazy pilot who is slightly off of his rocker, and Dan Ackroyd plays a army man who rallies troops with stirring speeches. By sticking to character conventions, Spielberg is helping the audience understand that this is film is tied to the war genre. Then, by utilizing goofy plot lines, the audience understands that this is a film meant to parody conventional war films.

The Japanese enemies within this film are very incompetent. They allow Slim Picken's character to escape from them, they spy on bathing women, and they open fire on a local carnival thinking it to be a military base. By creating an enemy that seems comical, Spielberg is allowing the film to be a total comedy. If the film had serious villains, there would be a hint of seriousness to the plot line. Basically, the protagonists would have to beat the antagonists for the viewer to feel at ease. Spielberg's decision to write a comical villian into this script allows "1941" to be a total goofball flick.

Spielberg creates a comical masterpiece in his film "1941" by using certain comical strategies. By using conventional war film characters, he allows the viewer to feel tied to the war movie genre, and by creating a non-threatening and goofy enemy, he allows the viewer to be fully enveloped by the comical side of the film.