Biggles' Elder Brother - Moderator Posted December 31, 2009 Share Posted December 31, 2009 I don't know if this has been done before - but I searched thread titles on films and movies and couldn't find anything. So,... Following on from FTB's comments about 633 Squadron in another thread, what's your favourite aviation based movie? I don't mean a documentary or video about a show, I mean a movie - you know actors and all that . It doesn't have to be "about planes" as such, but obviously planes/helicopters etc. have to feature heavily! For me its probably "Reach for the Sky" (story of Douglas Bader) - lots of real Spitfire/Hurricane footage and even footage of an old Avro 504 and a Bulldog. BEBEdited By Biggles' Elder Brother on 31/12/2009 20:29:37 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dusty Posted December 31, 2009 Share Posted December 31, 2009 TOP GUN Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
birdy Posted December 31, 2009 Share Posted December 31, 2009 Menthis Belle - if I spelt that right... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dusty Posted December 31, 2009 Share Posted December 31, 2009 Or the Tuskenee Airman is great film too! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BB Posted December 31, 2009 Share Posted December 31, 2009 Dam Busters - Every time. Slightly inacurate, yet over acurate regarding a certain personality. One of which died this year 2009. BB BB Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dusty Posted December 31, 2009 Share Posted December 31, 2009 This is feel good Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gerry Smyth Posted December 31, 2009 Share Posted December 31, 2009 The Blue Max Edited By Gerry Smyth on 31/12/2009 21:18:25 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony Campbell Posted December 31, 2009 Share Posted December 31, 2009 Flyboys, and Aces High Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil 9 Posted December 31, 2009 Share Posted December 31, 2009 The Blue Max is great the new Red Baron movie is terribly. 633 squadron is a classic and so is Top Gun >> I also saw recently the bbc series wings that was very good Piece of Cake was not so good. >> >>12 O’clock High is a very good film but not for the flying scenes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil 9 Posted December 31, 2009 Share Posted December 31, 2009 Spirit of St. Louis I forgot about this great film Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomas Barwick Posted December 31, 2009 Share Posted December 31, 2009 The Battle of Britain. Very good film. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doug Ireland Posted December 31, 2009 Share Posted December 31, 2009 The Sir Frank Whittle Story, sorry I can't remember the proper name for the film. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martin Harris - Moderator Posted January 1, 2010 Share Posted January 1, 2010 Howard Hughes' Hell's Angels is one of mine... One of the earliest talkies (Hughes re-filmed it at enormous cost when sound arrived) - the dialogue is atrocious but the flying sequences were flown by authentic veterans in the real aircraft. Shame about WW1 being flown over the American desert! I've even seen scenes from the film used in serous documentaries purporting to be original footage from WW1 I've never seen it on TV and when I bought a copy I had to get a region 1 DVD as I couldn't find it on region 2. Does anyone remember if it's ever been shown over here since its original release? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Ashby - Moderator Posted January 1, 2010 Share Posted January 1, 2010 Battle of Britain of course but I do like the helicopter/Stearman chase scene in Capricorn one - amazing flying there. The youtube vid is here if you haven't seen it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Bandit Posted January 1, 2010 Share Posted January 1, 2010 The Battle of Britain, Reach for the sky, The Dambusters, First of the few, Angles one five, Twelve O'clock high, Memphis Belle. I also like the P51 and B29 scenes in Empire of the sun. Chris. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ernie Posted January 1, 2010 Share Posted January 1, 2010 Murphies War, Peter o'Tool in a pink boiler suit ooh la la ernie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ken anderson. Posted January 1, 2010 Share Posted January 1, 2010 forget the rest and watch the best........'reach for the sky'............Kenneth More..worth his weight in gold.......... ken anderson..........Edited By ken anderson. on 01/01/2010 10:57:50 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James40 Posted January 1, 2010 Share Posted January 1, 2010 The Right Stuff. Although it was probably more covering the Mercury 7 program it has Chuck Yeager in the Bell X1 and the F104 Starfighter, although that didn't end so well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim Mackey Posted January 1, 2010 Share Posted January 1, 2010 I like Reach for the sky too, as well as BOB. Although not truly a film about aviation in its truest sense, I also like Apollo 13 a lot. Another good movie which does have some element of aviation in it is Behind Enemy Lines.... the intital shooting down sequence early in the film is a good demo of "proper film" interspaced with just enough CGI to remain convincing - still shakes the rafters when played on the big screen and the DD amp cranked up highDrifting off topic for the very first time this year, I must say that I find the so called "blockbusters" which are almost entirely CGI completely boring....stuff like "Independance Day" and all that rubbish - an aviation version was "Pearl harbour" - full of OTT self proclaimimg great american hero corniness....and not a decent bit of aeroplane filming anywhere. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob Cotsford Posted January 1, 2010 Share Posted January 1, 2010 CloudDancer - just ignore the plot! KungFu(Carradine) does championship aerobatics in a Pitts S1, with some good aerial scenes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruce Richards Posted January 1, 2010 Share Posted January 1, 2010 I agree Timbo Pearl Harbour was such a disappointment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil 9 Posted January 1, 2010 Share Posted January 1, 2010 Yes CGI over done ruins a film. but Timbo "behind enemy lines" I hate this film. It claims to be based on true events. It was true a pilot was shot down but the real story was he hid in a barn until a rescue team traced his beacon then picked him up. The hole film is just a big lie. I particularly like the like the scene as he runs past the exploding land mines. The first one would have ripped him apart.>> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
001 Posted January 1, 2010 Share Posted January 1, 2010 'The Great Waldo Pepper' -overlooked film, very hard to find on DVD. But, if you are interested in 1920's aviation, a must see. Funny, dramatic, tragic, dark and spectacular with some good acting. Apparently all the aerial shots and stunts were filmed for real, with no stand-in actors, no CGI here. There are some scenes that have stayed in my mind for over 30 years, the crashing through the barn, the undercarrige trick, the kid sent off to get fuel, the fire, the fall. etc. Ten/10 See it if you get the chance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Davis Posted January 1, 2010 Share Posted January 1, 2010 Don't forget, "Those Magnificent Men in their Flying Machines!" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
birdy Posted January 1, 2010 Share Posted January 1, 2010 Would it be off topic to think of the worst aviation film ever? The worst I think would be the one with Steven Segal (best when playing KC Ryback) wich involves that invisable plane that gets stolen..,. Terible. And although I agree that Appollo 13 is a great film (one of my all time faverites) I do not think that it is sttictly an avaition fim. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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