In 2012, director Peter Berg decided to adapt the game “Naval Battle” to the big screen. He thus released “Battleship”, a huge blockbuster worn by Taylor Kitsch. But did you know that the filmmaker took advantage of the RIMPAC (a huge military gathering) to film certain scenes?
Battleship : the descendant of transformers
Peter Berg is a bit like the mirror of Michael Bay. Same type of director, same types of methods, same types of films. In 2012, the director ofHancock, Welcome to the Jungle or recent Spenser Confidential starts in the staging of Battleship. Produced by Hasbro, the toy brand behind the franchise transformers (another point in common with Michael Bay), Battleship So is the big screen adaptation of the toy Touched flowed (Where Battleship) marketed from the 1930s. The electronic version of the game is sold today by the Hasbro company.
In front of the camera, the filmmaker hires a cast including Taylor Kitsch, Liam Neeson, Alexander Skarsgard, Jesse Plemons or even Rihanna in her first movie role. Even though the film received overwhelmingly negative reviews, it earned over $ 303 million in box office revenue (for a budget of 209 million).
How Peter Berg used RIMPAC?
Peter Berg and his team took advantage of RIMPAC to shoot some shots. the RIMPAC (Rim of the Pacific Exercise) is one of the most important military gatherings in the world. This event, which takes place every two years in Hawaii, brings together elements of the US Pacific fleet, but also of all the countries bordering this ocean. Each edition is led by a different nation that is a member of the United States Pacific Command (or Pacific Command, PACOM).
While the first exercise was held in 1971 with Australia, Canada, New Zealand, United Kingdom and United States, the last edition included 23 countries in total. According to the United States Department of Defense, the purpose of these gatherings is to train for potential conflicts over the Pacific Ocean. These unofficial meetings are mostly a way to use new ships and show each nation’s sea power.
Thereby, Peter Berg took advantage of this military meeting in Hawaii to film some images that ended up in the film. The filmmaker even opened his film with these sequences, including the football match between the different nations, which was shot during RIMPAC. For a while, this game should even have been American football, before Peter Berg chose classic football. because it “Had more than over the head to film American football”. A touch of humor in reference to his film and his series Friday Night Lights.
