Recognition of the Japanese Zero Fighter

Our great president was lucky enough to do anything during WW2 as he was practically blind, among other 4F-making problems. Still, like others who weren't up to scruff for fighting, he signed up anyway. Instead of being turned down, RR was used effectively for moral building public appearances and training films like JAP ZERO.

In this, the "Japs" aren't the real enemy, Reagan is. All too quick on the trigger in his fighter, he nearly downs fellow American Craig (Peter Gunn) Stevens.

This film was meant to help train pilots to wait until they could make out the enemy, insuring they weren't firing on a friend by mistake. The "Zero" in the title tells Regan to look at not only the shape of the plane, but the telltale meatball insignia. Note that this was not the ONLY training pilots received on the subject, but it was thought that a dramatization could help push home the point. Firing on and even downing friendly aircraft was a serious problem (as friendly fire is to this day).

Reagan manages a sympathetic portrayal as the young pilot who almost made a fatal mistake. The film is short, crisp, and using Hollywood veterans behind the cameras, well made.

For a great discussion of this film, see the article "Recognition of the Japanese Zero: What We Have Learned 65 Years Later" in Educational Technology July-Aug 2007 pg 39-41 by Denis Hylnka and Pauline Broderick. It points out how the film is an excellent example of well designed training -

"...this 19-minute film should be required viewing by every instruction designer and instructional technologist today. This film applies literally every technique of behaviorist learning theory; it is an example of one of the classic aesthetic products to emerge from the field of education technology; it is a significant historical document; and, finally, the film is illustrative of the figure/ground interactions of communication theory."

After reading this article, I can to this website looking to buy a copy.

In many ways, it's not fair to rate this film like others on IMDb. After all, it's an Army Air Corps training film despite having a very famous man in the leading role. During WWII, lots of Hollywood actors joined the military to do their part. Ronald Reagan was among these volunteers and was stationed state-side making various training and positive propaganda films. Some have criticized him for this, but this assignment was not his choice--plus he probably wouldn't have passed the induction physical, so he was put to good use in this capacity.

This film is exactly as the title suggests--a recognition guide to recognize the Japanese Zero fighter. Initially, some footage is shown and drawings are then compared between the Zero and Air Corps fighter planes--all set to narration by Art Gilmore. To illustrate the possibility of misidentification, a little vignette starring Reagan is then presented. He plays a young pilot who is a tad cocky--and this sets him up for serious problems in what follows.

Overall, this is not the sort of film the average person would watch. But, as I am a huge cinemaniac, I am just the sort to watch a WWII training film since it starred our future President and a popular actor doing the sort of film that seldom is seen by the public! If you are curious, too, give it a watch--it's well made and very effective in its task.