How can a movie be dumb as a bag of bricks yet require an advanced military education to figure out what the hell is going on?

Midway, the latest telling of the critical WWII Pacific theater, raises this question and plenty of others over the course of 140 long minutes — an abrasive cycle of men barking esoteric jargon, followed by loud, jumbled aeronautical action sequences where it’s difficult to tell what’s going on until later when a character explains it in civilian terms.

Working from a script by Wes Tooke (USA Network’s Colony) that’s serious and reverent to a fault, Roland Emmerich (Independence Day; White House Down) assaults viewers with another effects-heavy extravaganza, refusing to modernize his dated style for eyes and ears accustomed to slicker work.

In an era where CGI and filmmaking overall continue to evolve, scene after scene in Midway makes it distractingly clear that the actors are standing on a sound stage in front of a green screen. Viewers aren’t exactly expecting Dunkirk from this team, but a slightly more tactile production would go a long way.

It also doesn’t help that the important story is enacted by one of the least charismatic, whitest casts ever assembled. The sadly fitting ensemble finds Woody Harrelson and Dennis Quaid slumming it amidst guys wildly out of their element (Darren Criss, Nick Jonas) and ones who keep trying and failing to break through — and whose streak of misfortune will continue here (Ed Skrein, Patrick Wilson, Luke Evans, Aaron Eckhart).

All play real-life military heroes whose names won’t be further tarnished in this review. The same goes for Mandy Moore, relegated to “concerned wife” duty in the film’s lone female role with more than a handful of lines of dialogue, though hers has more agency than most wallflower Navy partners.

Grade: D-plus. Rated PG-13. Now playing at AMC Classic, Biltmore Grande, and Carolina Cinemark

(Photo: Reiner Bajo)