I was looking forward both to the intriguing premise of this war movie and to seeing John Woo’s direction. From Slate‘s “Summary Judgment”:

Windtalkers (MGM). Critics are disappointed by action maestro John Woo’s first war movie. The film is based on the United States’ use of the Navajo language as a code during World War II. It’s fascinating history, but “the filmmakers have buried it beneath battlefield clichés, while centering the story on a white character played by Nicolas Cage” (Roger Ebert, the Chicago Sun-Times). The combat scenes are “as kinetic (and as splattery) as any ever filmed” (David Edelstein, Slate), but they may not serve the movie: [Windtalkers‘] style keeps getting in the way of the action and the emotion” (Stephen Hunter, the Washington Post).