One of the curses of having an advanced degree in history is the awareness that not all films about the past are created the same.  I want them to be good because they involve my favorite subject.  However, when they get things wrong, it is usually painfully more obvious than it would be to the uninitiated.  The same goes for a practicing Catholic when a movie delves into aspects of the Faith.  When you have a motion picture that deals with both of those items, it can be a recipe for a personal disaster.  There is some of each of these in Windtalkers (2003), though I would not call it a disaster.  It is bad, some for the history, less for the Catholicism, but more because it is hyper-violent and there are some odd filming choices.  You will have to read on on to find out how this works.

As we will eventually find out about Private Ben Yahzee (Adam Beach), his reason for joining the Windtalkers is because he feels the Navajo have as much a responsibility to defend the United States as any other American.  His patriotism is not shared by all his fellow tribesmen, like Private Charlie Whitehorse (Roger Willie), but someone has to go to look after Ben.  It is the middle of World War II, and United States Marine Corps Sergeant Joe Enders (Nicolas Cage) is fighting in the Solomon Islands.  We see him engaged against the Japanese, all of his men being killed around him, while he escapes with some pretty serious wounds.  He is sent to Hawaii to convalesce, which is also where Ben and Charlie are sent to complete their training as “code talkers,” using their knowledge of the Navajo language in order to relay orders on the battlefield.  Because the Japanese do not understand the words, it allows the United States military to be able to make clear commands without the use of complicated obfuscations.  As they learn all the words for various pieces of military equipment, Sergeant Enders is beginning to feel the pull towards returning to duty.  Despite the insistence of Pharmacist’s Mate 2^nd Class Rita Swelton (Frances O’Connor) that he is in no shape for combat, he tries to demonstrate that he is fine.  This involves proving that his perforated ear drum is capable of hearing, and she gives him some signals during the test in order for him to pass.  Once this is done, he is sent to see Major Mellitz (Jason Isaacs) for his next assignment.  Despite Sergeant Enders’ misgivings, he is told that he will be assigned to protect one of the code talkers.  Because of the value of the Navajo to the Marines’ operations, he is told that he is not to allow any of them to fall into Japanese hands.  If it looks like one of them is about to be captured, he is to kill the Navajo.  Such instructions are not ideal, but he accepts them because he wants to return to being a soldier.  As he is rotated back into a unit, it is clear that he wants to set himself apart from the others.  The first to notice this is Sergeant Peter “Ox” Henderson (Christian Slater), his fellow code talker protector.  Sergeant Enders notices Sergeant Henderson is being too chummy with the latter’s charge, who is Charlie.  Since we have only really met one other code talker, I think you can guess with whom Ben is matched.  Ben tries to be friendly with Sergeant Enders, but the non-commissioned officer (NCO) makes it clear that he wants nothing to do with the Navajo.  There is also the inherent racism with which Ben must contend.  The primary culprit on this matter is the stereotypical Southerner, Private Charles “Chick” Clusters (Noah Emmerich).  Every opportunity he gets to pester Ben, Chick takes it.  It turns physical when, shortly after surviving their first engagement, Chick sneaks up on Ben as the latter is bathing.  Though Sergeant Enders is on hand to witness the brawl, he does not stop it, instead getting angry with Ben for being away without permission.  After another engagement, one in which Ben acquits himself well following his radio being destroyed, the frosty relations between them thaw as they share a drink and talk about what they might do after the war.  The fact that there is a friendship developing between the two has Sergeant Enders going to Gunnery Sergeant Richard Hjelmstead (Peter Stormare) to request that he no longer be responsible for Ben.  Before any decision can be made on the matter, they are attacked.  In the ensuing chaos, Sergeant Enders comes upon Charlie being taken captive by a number of Japanese troops.  Though he does not want to do it, with a nod from Charlie, Sergeant Enders tosses a grenade at them, that kills them all including the Navajo.  When Ben finally catches up to them, Sergeant Enders weakly admits to killing Charlie.  An enraged Ben begins beating Sergeant Enders and is about to shoot the NCO until Ben is wrestled away.  The anger stays with Ben as they go into their next engagement, which is hoped to be the last on the island of Saipan.  Ben and Sergeant Enders unit is sent ahead to scout and radio back Japanese positions, but it turns out to be an ambush.  A furious Ben charges ahead, but becomes separated from his radio.  Sergeant Enders retrieves it, and they are able to give the coordinates for American planes to drop bombs.  With that taken care of, it is time to go back, but they are wounded in the process.  Ben cannot walk, and Sergeant Enders puts Ben on his shoulders to carry the Navajo to safety.  There, it is revealed that Sergeant Enders is mortally wounded, and Ben holds his hands as the NCO dies.  The final scene is of Ben back on Navajo land honoring Sergeant Enders memory.

It is good that Windtalkers ends with a memorial, even if the rest of it is over-the-top.  It may not have been clear from the synopsis, though its brevity is one clue.  It is short because of the intense, drawn-out violence.  Hence, moments of sanity like at the end are welcome.  A big reason for my appreciation of that conclusion is my Faith.  It also helped that Ben and Sergeant Enders are Catholic, even if they are presented as having some less-than-ideal experiences.  Sergeant Enders admits to having beat up his disciplinarian priest, who was also the principal at his high school.  As for Ben, he had been tied to a radiator in the basement of the church for two days for speaking Navajo during Mass.  Their stories paint that stereotypical image of the Church as this strict organization that does not tolerate any deviation.  It is undeniable that sometimes terrible things happened, and continue to happen, in parishes across the country.  Sadly, broken people are sometimes put into positions of power that lead to them committing heinous acts.  If you are thinking that I am making too much out of a few lines of dialog, then consider that at one point Sergeant Enders traces the outline of a church in some flour on a table.  Before leaving the room, he angrily smashes the image.  This could be him rejecting the burden of having to sacrifice Ben should the time come, the symbol of the Faith making it seem harder.  What angers me about moments like this is that, especially in a big-budget Hollywood film like this one, it gives a false impression of Catholicism.  Nonetheless, the final moment between Ben and Sergeant Enders is them praying a “Hail Mary” before Sergeant Enders dies.  If you are unfamiliar with the words, it goes, “Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with Thee.  Blessed art though among women, and blessed is the Fruit of thy womb, Jesus.  Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death.  Amen.”  Many non-Catholics rail against such supplications, accusing those who say them of simply reciting rote lines.  I would argue that there are few more fitting things you can say to God in such moments than the “Hail Mary.”

Indeed, that prayer is the best moment in Windtalkers, even if it means Sergeant Enders death.  Otherwise, it is a bit of a loop of violence followed by stilted dialog, and repeat.  In other words, there are much better World War II films.