1942's Flying Tigers pays homage to the group of American volunteers who risked their lives to help the Chinese under Japanese occupation before World War II. 

John Wayne stars as Capt. Jim Gordon, in a role (although not the same character) he would play several more times in his career, such as in Flying Leathernecks, and The Sands of Iwo Jima.  The tough-as-nails, yet thoughtful and sort-of sensitive role model that the men in his command (and audiences) could look up to.  John Carroll plays "Woody" Jason, the brash, cocky, young pilot who joins up after quitting his commercial pilot job.  And Anna Lee plays their common love interest, nurse Brooke Elliot.

The plot? Well, to be honest there isn't much of a plot to speak of.  The Japanese drop bombs, the Tigers go up to shoot them down, and the two guys vie for the heart of the drop-dead gorgeous nurse.  Really that's about it.  In between there are some interludes involving the other pilots, Jason's crashing (twice no less), and a look at the Chinese orphanage where Elliot works.

That's the great part about this film, the way in which the Tigers are portrayed both as selfless heroes and real human beings, all at the same time.  The plight of the Chinese is outlined fairly well, which shows, quite effectively why they were there....  And drives home the nation's feelings when Dec. 7, 1941 rolls around.

At that point, the Tigers' overseer, Col. Lindsay shows up, and asks Gordon to effectively make a suicide run on a Japanese supply route.  Of course Jason goes along for the ride, and ends up redeeming his character in grand style, but not before delivering a speech worthy of the Flying Tigers.

Its also unfortunate the treatment the Chinese were given in the film.  Yes, I know it was 1942 and stereotypes were inevitable, but some of the ones presented here are just plain silly.  Especially the restaurant owner.

As for the performances, well, again, I can't say that they're stellar or anything.  But then again they didn't need to be.  Wayne is, well, himself.  What more can you say about that?

Flying Tigers does what it sets out to do, pay much-needed respect to the fighter squadron of the same name, and in that regard it still holds up, and carries a lot of weight today.  To top it off you get to see a lot of Curtiss P-40s in action, which is always welcome in my book.

Its a lot of fun, and manages to be serious in the process, but doesn't make you pay for it emotionally like a lot of modern films do.  Seems like I say that a lot about these classics, but it really is true.

Technorati Tags: war movie reviews, flying tigers, 1942, curtiss p-40, john wayne, john carroll, anna lee, world war ii 2, pacific, china

In 1955, the Cold War was just getting ramped up, and in that ten years since the end of WWII, the newly created Air Force ramped up as well, as we are shown in Strategic Air Command, starring Jimmy Stewart and June Allyson.  Not to mention the short-lived B-36 Peacemaker and the even more short-lived B-47 Stratojet bombers, the technological pride of the new skies.

Stewart plays Robert "Dutch" Holland, a former B-29 pilot who has become a popular baseball celebrity.  Allyson plays his wife, Sally.  Unfortunately for Dutch, he's called back into active duty by his old buddy, General "Rusty" Castle (James Millican), to fly the absolutely huge B-36.

This film is strangely reminiscent of WWII era military "propaganda" films from ten years earlier, with similar opening credits and scrolls, and a familiar "feel" throughout the entire picture.  Basically the film is a "showcase" for the new technology in use by the "modern" Air Force, and in that respect it is a masterpiece.

We're shown aspects of airbase security, as General Hawkes (Barry Sullivan) tries to sneak a DC3 onto the base in the guise of a commercial airliner in distress.  From there we practically get a commercial for the B-36, including a complete pre-flight, including all the requisite radio chatter.  Inside, we get a tour of this 10-engined behemoth, from the massively instrumented cockpit, to the tunnel through the fuel tanks and into the gunners' compartment in the rear.

Later on the B-47 Stratojet is revealed to Holland by Hawkes, and they take off on a top secret around-the-world mission to test its range capabilities.

Aviation buffs will enjoy this film, I know I did.  The attention paid to the aircraft in this picture is glorious to behold.  It's a testament to the big thinking (and big spending) of the era, as neither one of these massive planes stayed in service very long, with the B-47 starting to be decommissioned just as the last ones were delivered, to be replaced later by the immortal B-52.  And I can only imagine the sheer noise the B-36 must've made, with those six huge turbo-prop engines, AND its four jets.  Think of it.  Now that is "shock and awe."  Of course you'd probably never hear or see it if it came for you....

Stewart's performance is classic Stewart, although at times he seems a bit bored by the entire thing.  Allyson's performance is classic 50's Hollywood housewife, and apart from the planes, everyone else's parts just seem to disappear into the air.

The film also makes a strong justification for the spending and the buildup that was occurring in that era.  "At war but not at war" is brought up several times, and although the Red Menace(tm) is never mentioned by name, we know that's who they're talking about.  Combat readyness, and the ability to retaliate at a moments notice was paramount.  It's also made clear that nobody actually wanted that to happen, that all of this was done in the name of deterrence.

There's another scene which is pretty telling about the government mindset as well.  They're making test runs with the B-47, and are "bombing" cities in mock runs.  "Oh we've been bombing cities like this all over the US for some time now!"  Indeed!

I was surprised how much I enjoyed this film, expecting it to be just another 50's anthem-blaring feel good romp.  But the combination of the historical importance, the Stewart/Allyson chemistry, the technical look at two of the USAF's period bombers and the mindset surrounding them....  Strategic Air Command was fun and educational.

How many movies can you say that about?

Technorati Tags: war movie reviews, strategic air command, 1955, SAC, B-36 peacemaker, B-47 stratojet, james stewart, june allyson, cold war, nuclear bombers

The Dirty Dozen: The Fatal Mission is the last in a string of made-for-television sequels to the venerable 1967 classic "The Dirty Dozen."  Having not seen the rest of the "films" which make up these broadcast sequels, I have to judge this by itself, and in comparison to its namesake.

And in that respect it fails miserably.  Sure it was "made for TV," that much is painfully obvious, with the pre-planned commercial-break fades, and the just plain cheesy production quality.  With a cast like this (Ernest Borgnine, Telly Savales, Heather Thomas, and even Erik Estrada and Ernie Hudson) you'd expect a little better treatment.  And what the hell is Telly Savales even doing in these? Didn't his psycho-rapist character from the original die?  Yes I know its a different character but its still kind of odd.

Then there's the addition of Heather Thomas to the cast as an Army Lieutenant.  Eh?  OK, so maybe she's nice to look at, sort of, but really that's about all she adds to this picture.  Forget that she'd have the proverbial snowball's chance of actually getting out in the field with these guys in '43....

The story is based on what could be an interesting premise.  The idea is that Hitler has developed a plan to ensure the continuation of the Reich in the event of Germany's downfall by selecting a dozen promising Nazi party members to take up the flag in Istanbul.  The "Fourth Reich" as they call this is headed there via train on the route of the old "Orient Express."

OK, so put out of your mind the tactical foolishness of putting all twelve members of the future of your country in one rail car and sending them down the tracks, with no escape routes or anything.  Just try, I dare you!  Yeah, that's where this picture kind of disintegrates.

Of course you have the classic Dirty Dozen cliches of the men infighting over killing off their CO and making a run for it, versus sticking around.  And then there's the subplot of "the traitor" which really doesn't go anywhere or ultimately make any sort of difference at all....

... You've got the Yugoslavian resistance movement, and the General's conflict over ordering the train to be hit by airstrikes even though it might mean the new Dirty Dozen are killed in the process....  But really this is all quite dull and boring.  What with the 80's TV "A-Team" style shootouts, and pinpoint grenade tosses, I really didn't care much for this one.

Watch it when it comes around on the tube again, if you've got a spare couple of hours with nothing better to do.  I suppose it'd make for a good Saturday-afternoon popcorn muncher, but that's about it.

Technorati Tags: war movie reviews, dirty dozen, the fatal mission, 1988, television, telly savales, ernest borgnine, heather thomas, world war ii 2

In the same vein as the thoroughly enjoyable Air Force and the dreadful Wake Island comes the light-hearted yet still deadly serious Bombardier.  It's basically a War Department-sponsored (with real Air Corps Brass no less!) bit of propaganda which follows the development of the first group of precision high altitude "bombardiers" through to the beginning of the war and their first runs over Japan.

First, realize that this is without a doubt, a wartime propaganda film in its finest form.  That having been said, just put away any preconceptions you might have about its origins, and just sit back and have a bit of fun.

We find ourselves present at the formation of the first "bombardier" school, where they teach cadets how to use the new (but never actually named in the film!) Norden bombsight.  Of course if you've studied your history you know this little device is what made high altitude bombings possible, as opposed to the "old school" dive-bombing methods which were employed until that time.  It also illustrates just how secretive the government was about this box, including the oath these guys (at least in this picture) had to take to protect the box to their own deaths.

Sure you have to put up with a bit of a love story, and some silly antics that you know wouldn't have happened.  But as it plays out, you really start to get into the characters a little, well as much as you can anyway.  And yes, you will have to put up with (or fast forward through) an entire auditorium singing the Bombardier anthem.

The film takes on a more serious tone, though, as the cadets near graduation, right about the same time as Pearl Harbor, and after a rather horrific accident.  I was actually surprised to see them portray such a terrible accident in a film like this.  It really sinks home just how dangerous and "seat of the pants" the somewhat new business of military aviation was.

Then there's the actual bombing run over Nagoya, which initially goes terribly wrong, but through some Hollywood heroism turns out alright (well for most of our boys) in the end.

There are some aspects of this film which might interest the aviation buffs out there, namely the numerous appearances by the B-25 Mitchell and the B-17 Flying Fortress.  And a few scenes where they demonstrate some of the absolutely ingenious devices used to train these guys.  I mean brilliant.  The tabletop bomb trajectory simulator was my personal favorite.

I'll give it a seven, just because it is a lot of fun.  Probably more like a 6.8 or so, but I just can't bear to dock an effort like this too much.

It also appears that Bombardier doesn't exist yet on DVD, so a big thanks once again to Turner Classic Movies for throwing this one out there!

Technorati Tags: war movie review, bombardier, 1943, world war ii, b-25 mitchell, b-17 flying fortress, norden bombsight, army air corps, japan, pacific, propaganda, war department

Just found out about this one as well.  This should be simply incredible....

THE WAR, a seven-part series directed and produced by Ken Burns and Lynn Novick, tells the story of the Second World War through the personal accounts of a handful of men and women from four quintessentially American towns. The series explores the most intimate human dimensions of the greatest cataclysm in history — a worldwide catastrophe that touched the lives of every family on every street in every town in America — and demonstrates that in extraordinary times, there are no ordinary lives.

Throughout the series, the indelible experience of combat is brought vividly to life as veterans describe what it was like to fight and kill and see men die at places like Monte Cassino and Anzio and Omaha Beach; the HÃŒrtgen Forest and the Vosges Mountains and the Ardennes; and on the other side of the world at Guadalcanal and Tarawa and Saipan; Peleliu and the Philippine Sea and Okinawa. In all of the battle scenes, dramatic historical footage and photographs are combined with extraordinarily realistic sound effects to give the film a terrifying, visceral immediacy.

Be sure to check out the links on the PBS page, including the Library of Congress Veterans History Project.  Excellent stuff.

Link: The War | PBS

Technorati Tags: war movie news, the war, pbs, ken burns, veterans history project, world war ii 2, miniseries, documentary

From across the pond comes a little-known film called Overlord, which of course was the code name for the June 6, 1944 D-Day invasion.

This film really is a hidden gem.  Shot completely in black and white, and brilliantly intermixed with a ton of documentary footage from the Imperial War Museum's archives, Overlord is a surprising bit of experimental film making.

The story follows one Thomas Beddows as he joins up for the Army in '44.  He's shuffled around in the pre-invasion buildup, until he finally disembarks across the channel.  Unfortunately, that's where the story ends.

Overlord combined the aforementioned archival footage in such a way as to be nearly seamless.  The movie's original footage was shot (or at least appears to be) in a similar style and with similar cameras and film as would have been for the era.

The only drawback to Overlord is that at times, especially towards the end, it gets a bit too arty-film-school for its own good.  There are a couple scenes which stand out in this respect, one being right at the end where he daydreams about the girl he met only once preparing his corpse in some bizarre ritual....  Yeah, stuff like that.

If you overlook those moments, you really find yourself admiring this film.  As one of the commentators in the DVD's special features said, you find yourself marvelling at the accidental beauty of the stock footage, only to be reminded, usually by that same footage just how horrible it all really is.

If you happen to come across this DVD, be sure to get into the special features section, as there is an entire "episode" which goes into where a lot of this footage actually comes from, and the people behind it.  I highly recommend checking that out.

Of note in this film, also, is a few rare glimpses at some of the British experimental beach invasion equipment, including the chain-flinging minesweeper tank, the "rolling carpet" tank, and a look at the failed "rocket wheel" (I forget the longish proper name for it) device which was designed to launch a high explosive charge across the water into the German's concrete beach defenses.

What could have been an absolutely brilliant film though, becomes a merely brilliant work due to the arty intrusions, so I give Overlord an eight....  Check this one out.

Technorati Tags: war movie review, overlord, 1975, d-day invasion, 1944, world war ii 2, wwii

Man, I can honestly say I've just seen the most bleak, dark, depressing, demoralizing... and downright dull war movie I've seen to date....

A Walk in the Sun follows a squad of soldiers as they land on a beach in Italy, and proceed to an occupied farmhouse in a quest to blow up a bridge.  Of course since their Lieutenant's dead, it seems they have to figure that out for themselves.

Of course they have to walk to get there.  And that's about all this movie is about, walking, and talking.  There is endless talk, most of it is the kind of soliloquy and chatter that might've read well on paper, but translates into pretentious pontification on the screen.  Talk, talk, talk.  Some of the most depressing and cynical you'll hear.  It starts off that way, it ends that way.

Oh sure there are a couple of (very!) brief moments where they get shot at, and somebody dies, but then it goes right back to more of the same.  Sure that's probably part of the goal of the picture, to portray the "hurry up and wait" and "nobody knows what's happening" aspects of going to war that are faced.  But it just doesn't make for a good picture.

Add to that the cheesy and sappy "soundtrack" if you want to call it that, with some vibrato tenor singing a overly pretentious song about "a walk in the sun."  Ick.

Interestingly, it seems that in 1945, "loving" was a perfectly acceptable replacement for "f--king" where the Hayes Office is concerned.  At least in this picture.  Kind of funny in a way.  "This loving war."  "My loving gun." Etc, etc.

I went into this picture expecting a lot more from the ratings and reviews I read.  I suppose in an academic sense its a good picture with a good message, but from the outset its such a downer I recommend to spend your time elsewhere....

A Walk in the Sun is directed by "All Quiet on the Western Front" and "Halls of Montezuma" helmsman Lewis Milestone.  It's interesting to compare this picture with "Halls" as a lot of the same themes are presented, but "Halls" is just a much better picture on so many levels it isn't even comparable.

Starring are Dana Andrews, John Ireland, Lloyd Bridges, George Tyne, Huntz Hall and Richard Conte.

Technorati Tags: war movie review, a walk in the sun, 1945, lewis milestone, Dana Andrews, John Ireland, Lloyd Bridges, George Tyne, Huntz Hall, Richard Conte, world war ii 2, wwii