Reviews of Aviation Films and Movies

This is an account of the escapades of the members of a British bomber crew as they make there way back to England after being forced to bail out over Holland during a WW-II raid. Since their plane (known by its call-sign 'B for Bertie') is lost early in the action, there is not really too much aviation material. Nevertheless, you may wish to see it just to savor the thoroughly engaging style of its directors, the team of Powell and Pressburger. These guys have a way of making things that would seem stereotypical, outlandish or even bizarre, if done by someone else, work and work well. If you like this film, you might want to try their other works, particularly 'The Forty-Ninth Parallel', which is another fine wartime adventure story.

This film probably holds the record for the greatest number of derivative aviation-film cliches per minute of screen time. Cruise plays an archetypically aggressive young pilot who is sent by the Navy to its legendary 'Top Gun' fighter warfare school. There he lives up to his 'call-sign' (the nickname a pilot uses to identify himself over the radio), 'Maverick', by getting himself into endless trouble. Maverick, it seems, is tortured by self-doubt resulting from unfounded rumors that his old-man, a Navy pilot who died under mysterious circumstances during the war in Vietnam, did not have the 'right-stuff'. This angst is translated into all sorts of rebellious behavior (including the chronic 'buzzing' of airfield towers) which threatens to end his career. Nevertheless, his innate courage and skill make him a contender for first place in his class while his good looks and charm win him the affections of the stunningly beautiful Kelly McGillis, a civilian consultant with a PhD in astrophysics (I kid you not!). Then, tragedy strikes. 'Goose', the Radar-Interception-Officer (RIO) who flies with Maverick in his F-14 Tomcat (played by a pre-'ER' Anthony Edwards), is killed in a freak accident. Maverick is cleared of responsibility by a review-board and is forgiven by his partner's widow (Meg Ryan), but his vulnerable ego is wounded and he becomes pray to even greater concerns about his worth. Not to worry though, with the help of his friends and cohorts he survives and goes on to win glory in a climatic engagement with the aircraft of an unnamed Persian Gulf nation.

All this is presented without the leavening of any self-mocking humor. But, if taken with the proverbial 'grain of salt', it becomes good, clean escapist fun. The flying sequences, some of them filmed at the real Top-Gun school, are truly exciting. Also, special credit should be given to Edwards and Ryan who turn their supporting roles into an unexpectedly affecting portrait of a young couple in love.

In 1942, B-25 bombers launched from the aircraft carrier Hornet attacked Tokyo. Although it did little damage, the raid, which was the brainchild of the legendary Lieutenant-Colonel 'Jimmy' Doolittle, had great propaganda value, for it showed the Japanese that their nation was not, as they had imagined, safe from aerial bombardment. This film is a fictionalized account of the mission as seen through the eyes of a young pilot played by Van Johnson.

While the story covers the preparation and execution of the raid and the subsequent heroic rescue of stranded aircrews by Chinese nationals, the focus is more on the main characters than the events, with much emphasis being given to their uniquely American values. However, to its credit, the film is less jingoistic in its presentation than many other wartime pieces. The men are allowed to express concern about the violent acts they will be called upon to perform and, when they are wounded, the camera does not shy away from recording their pain and fear.

This is one of those elaborately produced war films, similar to such works as 'The Longest Day', 'Battle of the Bulge' and 'A Bridge Too Far', in which well-known actors and actresses play cameo roles as semi-fictionalized historical figures. Unfortunately, like so many of these 'docu-dramas', this one succeeds neither as a documentary nor as a drama. Both the history and the characterizations are so broadly done that they become hopelessly muddled. Nevertheless, the opus does have something to offer the pure aviation enthusiast: scene after scene in which the aerial combat of the era is reproduced with great authenticity (right down to the suicidaly cumbersome 'Vic' formations used by the RAF at the start of the war).

In one of the better moments, a group of Free Polish Air Force pilots slip the leash held by their British squardron leader and go 'neck or nothing' after a formation of German bombers. And you should know that this tradition of daring and courage, is, today, carried on by another heroic Polish aviator, none other than our host, the famous Richie Bielak. (Forgive me folks, but he wouldn't publish the review unless I put that in.)

(Hey, I never said that I wouldn't publish the review, I just wanted Rambo to mention the scene with the Polish pilots! Richie)

While many of its aerial sequences have an enchanting quality that makes human powered flight seem wonderfully natural and pleasant, some may find the film to be far too cute for its own good. Also, even accounting for 'willing suspension of disbelief', there is something disturbing about the suggestion that a parent would allow a child to pilot an Ultra-Light solo over such immense distances. Please kids, don't try this at home!

The earliest days of aviation, when it was a sport for enthusiastic amateurs as yet unspoiled by association with war, are invoked in this burlesque account of the first London-to-Paris air race that took place in 1910. Those interested in aircraft of the period will undoubtedly find the recreations used in the film fascinating. Unfortunately, the rest of its contents does not soar along with them. In fact, despite the efforts of an huge cast of internationally known funny-men, it labors along rather ponderously, weighed down, as it were, by a predictable story line and characterizations that consist largely of unimaginative national stereotypes (the diffident English diletante, the feisty little Frenchman, the pompous German automaton, the extravagant Italian with a huge family, etc., etc., etc.).

A point of interest: at the end of the film the narrator notes that the flight that took 25 hours and 11 minutes in 1910 can now be made in about 7 minutes. To emphasize this, jets are seen roaring overhead. They are visible, in silhouette, for just a few seconds, but, judging from the shape of their wings, they appear to be British-Electric Lightenings (affectionately known as 'flying file-cabinets').

At the start of the work, aviation is shown as a horrific instrument of wartime aggression. A nightmare sequence in which a city is bombed by by an all but unseen enemy, reflected the fear of air warfare prevalent at the time the film was made. This fear was so strong that some scholars believe it contributed to the rise of Hitler by fostering, on the part of the allies, the policy of appeasement.

Later, in an England where culture has been set back to a medieval level by decades of warfare, aviation is presented quite differently when an emissary from a part of the world where technology has been preserved arrives in an airplane (wearing a futuristic costume with an immense helmet that is clearly meant to emphasize the importance of intellect in the role he plays). When asked, by a local warlord, who he is, he answers cryptically 'Wings Over the World' and then sets about the work of restoring civilization. Here then, aviation has become the symbol of the constructive power of science.

Finally, in a world made wonderful by advanced technology, aviation takes on another role when a dangerous mission to orbit the moon is used to frame the argument that knowledge is, quite literally, worth dying for. Now, flight represents the inspirational, as opposed to the practical, role of science.

Viewed from our perspective in an age of 'techno-stress', Well's faith in the ultimate benefits of science and technology may seem naive. Certainly his ideas are set forth in a manner that seems, at times, simplistic and pontificating. Nevertheless, the film is absolutely worth seeing. The ensemble cast of first-rate British actors turn in solid (though occasionally 'hammy') performances. Also, the production values and special effects are so beautifully integrated with the themes being presented that, though archaic by the standards of the post 'Star-Wars' cinema, they have far more impact than much of the meaningless glitz we are exposed to today.