It takes forever to even get to the hint of a battle occurring, with the real life 1942 incident occurring during the last tenth of the film. The submarine commanded by Cliff Robertson is seen going through the Japanese infested sea with all sorts of mechanical contraptions left around indicating that their presence will be discovered. They are indeed captured and end up on an island war prison run by the ruthless Teru Shimada who dares anyone who thinks that they can swim 200 miles to dare to try to escape.
So the viewer has to sit through countless scenes of torture and shootouts as the prisoners (which includes a young Tom Laughlin) try to escape, and then there's still half an hour left. Gia Scala and Patricia Cutts are present in the prison camp which questions the side these two women are on. So the fact that the audience believes that they're getting a dramatization of one of the great battles of the war only gets a brief glimpse, and the result is your typical late 50's B war movie, where the black and white photography doesn't show the majestic surroundings of what is found inside the coral sea.
So the viewer has to sit through countless scenes of torture and shootouts as the prisoners (which includes a young Tom Laughlin) try to escape, and then there's still half an hour left. Gia Scala and Patricia Cutts are present in the prison camp which questions the side these two women are on. So the fact that the audience believes that they're getting a dramatization of one of the great battles of the war only gets a brief glimpse, and the result is your typical late 50's B war movie, where the black and white photography doesn't show the majestic surroundings of what is found inside the coral sea.