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1941

  • 1979
  • PG
  • 1h 58m
IMDb RATING
5.8/10
37K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
3,640
1,436
1941 (1979)
Trailer 1
Play trailer1:47
1 Video
99+ Photos
SatireSlapstickActionComedyWar

Hysterical Californians prepare for a Japanese invasion in the days after Pearl Harbor.Hysterical Californians prepare for a Japanese invasion in the days after Pearl Harbor.Hysterical Californians prepare for a Japanese invasion in the days after Pearl Harbor.

  • Director
    • Steven Spielberg
  • Writers
    • Robert Zemeckis
    • Bob Gale
    • John Milius
  • Stars
    • John Belushi
    • Dan Aykroyd
    • Treat Williams
  • See production info at IMDbPro
    • IMDb RATING
    5.8/10
    37K
    YOUR RATING
    POPULARITY
    3,640
    1,436
    • Director
      • Steven Spielberg
    • Writers
      • Robert Zemeckis
      • Bob Gale
      • John Milius
    • Stars
      • John Belushi
      • Dan Aykroyd
      • Treat Williams
    • 305User reviews
    • 69Critic reviews
    • 34Metascore
  • See production info at IMDbPro
    • Nominated for 3 Oscars
      • 6 nominations total

    Videos1

    1941
    Trailer 1:47
    Watch 1941

    Photos246

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    Top cast97

    Edit
    John Belushi
    John Belushi
    • Capt. Wild Bill Kelso
    Dan Aykroyd
    Dan Aykroyd
    • Sgt. Frank Tree
    Treat Williams
    Treat Williams
    • Cpl. Chuck 'Stretch' Sitarski
    Nancy Allen
    Nancy Allen
    • Donna Stratton
    Ned Beatty
    Ned Beatty
    • Ward Douglas
    Lorraine Gary
    Lorraine Gary
    • Joan Douglas
    Murray Hamilton
    Murray Hamilton
    • Claude Crumn
    Christopher Lee
    Christopher Lee
    • Capt. Wolfgang von Kleinschmidt
    Tim Matheson
    Tim Matheson
    • Capt. Loomis Birkhead
    Toshirô Mifune
    Toshirô Mifune
    • Cmdr. Akiro Mitamura
    • (as Toshiro Mifune)
    Warren Oates
    Warren Oates
    • Col. 'Madman' Maddox
    Robert Stack
    Robert Stack
    • Maj. Gen. Joseph W. Stilwell
    Lucille Benson
    Lucille Benson
    • Gas Mama (Eloise)
    • (as Lucille Bensen)
    Jordan Cohen
    • Macey Douglas
    • (as Jordan Brian)
    John Candy
    John Candy
    • Pvt. Foley
    Elisha Cook Jr.
    Elisha Cook Jr.
    • The Patron (Dexter)
    • (as Elisha Cook)
    Eddie Deezen
    Eddie Deezen
    • Herbie Kazlminsky
    Bobby Di Cicco
    Bobby Di Cicco
    • Wally Stephens
    • Director
      • Steven Spielberg
    • Writers
      • Robert Zemeckis
      • Bob Gale
      • John Milius
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Some scenes were so noisy during filming that the crew could not hear Steven Spielberg yell "Cut". He had to fire a prop machine gun in the air to get the action to stop.
    • Goofs
      Herbie and Claude change position on the ferris wheel. Spielberg did that deliberately for comedic effect.
    • Quotes

      Japanese soldier: [trying to squeeze a large radio into the sub] We've got to figure out how to make these things smaller!

    • Crazy credits
      End credits feature scenes showing cast members screaming.
    • Alternate versions
      The version released on network television and VHS/DVD/laserdisc is Spielberg's original director's cut, running 146 minutes, fleshing out sub-plots and characterizations, including:
      • Wally and Dennis getting thrown out onto the street by Mr. Malcomb after he fires them from the diner where they work.
      • Miss Fitzroy lecturing a group of women, Betty and Maxine among them, about tonight's USO dance which is interupted by a group of Army service men and Sailors entering and chanting wanting the women.
      • A department store scene with Wally fussing about buying an expensive new zoot suit and Dennis sounding a phoney air-raid siren which leads to panic in the store including a gun-toting Santa Claus yelling out command orders which is revealed to be a set up by Wally who walks out of the store wearing the zoot suit while Dennis meets the twin girls for the first time.
      • A scene with Scioli outside his house arguing with his non-English speaking wife about converting their car into an armored car while talking with Claude about sending him and someone else atop the Santa Monica ferris wheel on a spot mission for Japanese planes.
      • A extra scene with Ito and the I-19 Japanese submarine shore party disguising themselves as Christmas trees in a remote Christmas tree lot and the drunken Hollis Wood trying to "chop" them down which leads to his capture.
      • Scioli arriving at the ferris wheel with Claude and Herbie and explaing to them about their mission in the ferris wheel.
      • A dinner scene at the Douglas home and Ward explaining to Betty about her going to the USO dance and telling her about the pros and cons about meeting servicemen.
      • A barracks scene with Odgen Johnson Jones arriving for the first time at the barracks and imediately quarling with the racist Foley about property lines within their quarters.
      • A scene outside the USO club where Wally arrives and meets with Martinez and his Zoot Suit friends where they are denied access to the club where Corporal Stretch shows up and sets Wally's zoot suit afire which nearly leads to a riot between the Zoot Suiters and the Servicemen. Wally then meets Dennis dressed up as a Marine in order to gain entrance into the club with the twins as his dates.
      • Additional dialoge between Captain Birkhead and Donna in their car on the way to the airstrip and being afraid of the dark.
      • Another barracks scene where Sergeant Tree breaks up a fistfight between Jones and Foley by informing them about the riot on Hollywood Blvd. and showing them climing into their tank and starting it up.
      • A scene of the Japanese submarine I-19 arriving for the first time outside the Douglas house and the sub's entire crew on the deck watching Joan Douglas taking a bath through the bathroom window.
      • A scene of the tank traveling down a residential street and Wally shooting up Officer Miller's police car to pieces, sending the policeman and some paserby's running for their lives.
    • Connections
      Featured in At the Movies: Special Show: The Magic of Spielberg (1984)
    • Soundtracks
      Down by the Ohio
      Music by Abe Olman (uncredited)
      Lyrics by Jack Yellen (uncredited)
      Performed by The Andrews Sisters
      Courtesy of MCA Records, Inc.

    User reviews305

    Review
    Review
    Featured review

    Great Laffs

    A Japanese sub off the coast of California looking for Hollywood so they can "blow the s**t out of something big". There's your plot.

    Yeah, It's got some slapstick but this film cooks. It's sorta like a Murphy's Law about hysteria. What if everything went wrong? Could that happen? Yes! There's solid performances from everybody from the kid in the ferris wheel to Robert Stack (actually crying in a theatre while watching DUMBO). An intelligent piece of film work? No. But comedy doesn't have to be. M*A*S*H* it ain't, but it doesn't try to be either. Enjoy.
    • ttbrowne
    • Jan 25, 2001
    • Permalink

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    FAQ22

    • How long is 1941?Powered by Alexa
    • Why do some versions have subtitles for the Japanese and German speakers and others do not?
    • Is this movie safe for kids?
    • What are the differences between the Theatrical Version and the Director's Cut?

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • December 14, 1979 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Languages
      • English
      • Japanese
      • German
      • Spanish
    • Also known as
      • The Night the Japs Attacked
    • Filming locations
      • Gold Beach, Oregon, USA(opening scene with sub)
    • Production companies
      • Universal Pictures
      • Columbia Pictures
      • A-Team
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $35,000,000 (estimated)
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $31,755,742
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $2,701,898
      • Dec 16, 1979
    • Gross worldwide
      • $92,455,742
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 58 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Aspect ratio
      • 2.39 : 1

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