favourite aviation film? [Archive]

Dop

18th Aug 2006, 14:44

I could say something obvious here like some of the films mentioned before and maybe some that will be mentioned after, so I won't. Instead I'll come in at a weird tangent and suggest this:-

Porco Rosso (http://www.nausicaa.net/miyazaki/porco/).

No, seriously, set between the wars to a background of the rise of fascism in Italy, it's got everything.

Flying boats!
Air pirates of the Adriatic!
Dogfights!
Romance!
Comedy!

Just, whatever you do, don't watch the dubbed version.
Original soundtrack version with subtitles is far better.

A pig's got to fly.

Globaliser

18th Aug 2006, 17:03

Will I get banned from PPRuNe for suggesting Airplane! (http://uk.imdb.com/title/tt0080339/)?

chiglet

18th Aug 2006, 17:36

BoB,
Blue Max,
Sound Barrier,
Flying Leathernecks [apart from the cockpits :ugh: ]
High Flight
Dambusters
Top Gun
Red One to London [one for HD :E ]
watp,iktch

planeenglish

18th Aug 2006, 17:37

Hi all,

I think Whiskey Romeo Zulu was exceptional.

Also a personal favorite is Blue Max. Airplane is just a simple classic...:ok:

Anybody seen The Great Air Race?

Best to you all, PE

Flaps ten please

18th Aug 2006, 18:11

In no particular order:

Top Gun
Memphis Belle
Those Magnificent Men in their Flying Machines
The Right Stuff
The Aviator

stevef

18th Aug 2006, 19:48

Undoubtedly, Twelve o' Clock High.

There was another excellent film (b&w, 40s vintage), starring Richard Attenborough as a RAF wannabe pilot who gets washed out of the Arnold Scheme after pranging a PT17, unhappily remusters as navigator and ends up on a Lancaster squadron. His aircraft gets shot down and he manages to plot its position before they ditch. Anyone remember what it was called?

Angels One-Five with John Gregson.

The original Memphis Belle.

The original Flight of the Phoenix.

Simtech

18th Aug 2006, 20:07

stevef,

The Richard Attenborough film you remember is called "Journey Together".

My own favourites, in no particular order:

Those Magnificent Men In Their Flying Machines
Battle of Britain
Twelve O'Clock High
Memphis Belle (the original WW2 documentary)
Airplane!
Dambusters

stevef

18th Aug 2006, 20:21

Ah, that's it! Thanks, Simtech.

pigboat

18th Aug 2006, 21:00

In no particular order

Island In The Sky
The High And The Mighty
Battle Of Britain
633 Squadron
Always
Zero Hour
TMMITFM
Captains Of The Clouds

ormus55

18th Aug 2006, 21:59

some really good films been mentioned here.

i forgot about, waldo pepper and mephis belle. add them to my list.:)

Evileyes

18th Aug 2006, 22:31

Interesting list here. Brought back some memories:

http://faculty.dwc.edu/Nicosia/apcm_list_of_aviation_movies.htm

Conan the Librarian

19th Aug 2006, 00:23

I love the short, non commercial films by the Swiss. Mix fast jets with the Alps and you have a stupendously beautiful piece of aviation footage.

Conan

Dan Winterland

19th Aug 2006, 03:26

The Right Stuff.

Flight of the Intruder.

You want it when?

19th Aug 2006, 17:46

Battle of Britain
Top Gun
Always
Angels 15

Would do for starters... :ok:

happ1ness

19th Aug 2006, 19:48

Blue Max and Top Gun.
Closely followed by Waldo Pepper for the final Dog Fight Scenes.:)

reynoldsno1

23rd Aug 2006, 04:20

A pox on all those who dared even whisper Top Gun ......:suspect:

Murphy's War
Aces High

Simtech

23rd Aug 2006, 06:10

A pox on all those who dared even whisper Top Gun ......

Fair enough, how about "Hot Shots"?

treadigraph

23rd Aug 2006, 07:48

Ah, Murphy's War, just ordered it on DVD!

HEATHROW DIRECTOR

23rd Aug 2006, 08:40

Good Lord, nobody has mentioned Dr Strangelove - surely the best aviation film of all time??!! They even got the map of Heathrow upside down!

Capt Pit Bull

23rd Aug 2006, 09:12

The Right Stuff (..... fairly conventional so far)

The Hunters
The Bridges of Tokori (...... surprised no one has mentioned these yet)

Fly Away Home (...... not mentioned so far, a superbly crafted movie that is particularly suited for family viewing. My daughter loves it.)

pb

WHBM

23rd Aug 2006, 09:30

Always
Memphis Belle (1943 original)

and an honourable mention to The Aviator, not bad for current Hollywood.

Shan't start on the awful ones

I once got into a brief chance conversation in a restaurant in Los Angeles with Holly Hunter ("Always" star) some years after the film. Apparently Hollywood gets really fed up with those like us who look at the "props" (the film accessories sort, not the Hamilton Standard sort !) rather than the acting. I was trying to explain that it was the aircraft* that were the real stars of Always. Bad plan, an interesting discussion went downhill and was soon terminated after that !

* : "Always" aircraft -

Catalina
B25
C119 Flying Boxcar

UAQ860-Frasier

23rd Aug 2006, 09:40

Hot Shots, practically fell out of my seat at the opening scenes in that first time round.

Personal favourites have to include The First of the Few and of course Dambusters, 633 Squadron and any other classics I may have missed.

beamer

23rd Aug 2006, 10:20

Top Gun - American Tosh though good sound track.
Battle of Britain - Too many 'stars' but any film with Miss York in stockings and suspenders has to be good.
Dambusters - Classic 1950's stuff - very good for its time and all the better for being in black and white.
633 Squadron - Dated and cliched but a good yarn with Goodwin soundtrack.
The Right Stuff - very good attempt to recreate the Mercury programme on film.
Memphis Belle - 1940's original very good documentary - 1980's movie version crap.
Angels One Five - awful special effects but a certain charm.
Bridges at Toko-Ri - underestimated Korean War effort even with Mickey Rooney.
Appointment in London - Overshadowed by Dambusters but a good film for a sunday afternoon.

I read somewhere that David Frost wanted to remake the Dambusters - please, please let this not be the case. Some things are better left alone and this film is one of them. Any attempt to create this story with no doubt its politically correct undertones would be a travesty not only to the original film but also to the events depicted and the personnel involved in the attack upon the dams in 1943.

Mercenary Pilot

23rd Aug 2006, 11:21

I heard they were re-making Dam-Busters minus the dog (His name being un-PC). :rolleyes:

RabbitLeader

23rd Aug 2006, 11:42

Nobody's mentioned the nice little Czech movie Dark Blue World. For shame!

Some personal faves (in no particular order)

Dark Blue World
Battle of Britain
Hell's Angels
Aces High
Wings (silent 1927 movie)
Memphis Belle

Got loads more, but can't think of them all!

ORAC

23rd Aug 2006, 11:57

The Blue Max....

One of the stunt pilots used in the film was Derek Piggott. Piggott was the only pilot to agree to fly the stunt at the climax of the film in which the two rivals challenge each other to fly beneath the spans of a bridge.

Taking the role of both German pilots and with multiple takes from contrasting camera angles, he ended up flying through the wide span of the bridge, in Fermoy Co. Cork Ireland, 15 times and through the narrower span 17 times. The Fokker Dr.I triplane replica had four feet of clearance on each side when passing through the narrow span.........

precession

23rd Aug 2006, 12:39

Wikipedia:

Stunt flying

One of the stunt pilots used in the film was Derek Piggott (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Derek_Piggott). Several pilots helped recreate the live dog-fights scenes for the film, but Piggott was the only pilot to agree to fly the stunt at the climax of the film in which the two rivals challenge each other to fly beneath the spans of a bridge. Taking the role of both German pilots and with multiple takes from contrasting camera angles, he ended up flying through the wide span of this bridge in Fermoy (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fermoy) Co. Cork Ireland (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ireland) 15 times and 17 times through the narrower span. The two Fokker Dr.I (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fokker_Dr.I) triplane replicas had about four feet of clearance on each side when passing through the narrower span. The director had placed a flock of sheep next to the bridge so that they would scatter as the plane approached in order to demonstrate that the stunt was real and had not used models. However, by later takes, the sheep had become accustomed to the planes and continued to graze, creating a continuity error which can be seen in the finished film. The sheep had to be scared by the shepherd instead. He was able to fly through the arch reliably by aligning two scaffolding poles, one in the river and one on the far bank.

I personally like "Man in Sky" about David Perrin who was a personal Inspiration to me, and Wind in the Wires.

Loki

23rd Aug 2006, 12:56

An awful film in many respects, being mostly cold war propaganda, but Strategic Air Command had two good things going for it James stewart, and lots of footage of the B36.

chiglet

23rd Aug 2006, 19:04

Delta Papa....Derek Piggots' autobiography.
Also tell tales about "Those Magnificent Men" among others. Darn good read.
watp,iktch

Mercenary Pilot

23rd Aug 2006, 19:48

Anyone know if there are any (good) aviation movies featuring modern airliners?

kms901

23rd Aug 2006, 20:03

Hanover Street.

1.Lots of real footage of B-25'(There's a great documentary about flying them across the Atlantic.)

2. Harrison Ford (always good as a pilot)

3. Lesley Anne Down (yes please)

stevef

23rd Aug 2006, 20:14

It seems to me that the more modern films are high on special effects but low on authenticity and character substance. I watched the remake of Flight of the Phoenix the other day and was very disappointed. Full of posturing one-dimensional stereotypes and the ending was right out of an Indiana Jones plot. The gritty original was far superior imo. Likewise with Memphis Belle. But, I suppose they're good entertainment for those who don't know much about aviation. And those who haven't attained middle-aged whinginess too.
:^)

SPIT

23rd Aug 2006, 23:19

Appointment In London
Always

1946

24th Aug 2006, 03:04

For a couple of tele movies-
Peice of Cake, magnificent lot of spitfires and battle scenes
Half a world away, 1930's Mac Robinson Londen -Melbourne air race.

GOLF_BRAVO_ZULU

24th Aug 2006, 10:20

Anyone know if there are any (good) aviation movies featuring modern airliners?

Not modern but:

No Highway. Based on the Neville Shute novel and starred Jimmy Stewart, Marlene Dietrich, Jack Hawkins and Glynis Johns.

Cone of Silence. A competent, "by the book" pilot gets nailed for an A/C design fault. Starred Michael Craig, Bernard Lee, Peter Cushing and George Sanders.

ORAC

24th Aug 2006, 10:33

Anyone know if there are any (good) aviation movies featuring modern airliners?

Crash Landing: The Rescue of Flight 232 (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0104020)

Inverted81

24th Aug 2006, 11:23

BoB
633 Sqn
Dambusters
Waldo pepper...
etc etc...
one i haven't seen for ages is the 80's "BiGGLES" obviously based on the book and based on nothing factual, but entertaining none the less... :eek: ) despite tiger moths being painted as se5's !! lol
actually the more i talk about it the worse it sounds!

RabbitLeader

24th Aug 2006, 16:23

one i haven't seen for ages is the 80's "BiGGLES" obviously based on the book and based on nothing factual, but entertaining none the less... :eek: ) despite tiger moths being painted as se5's !! lol
actually the more i talk about it the worse it sounds!

You don't mean the one with Peter Cushing, do you??

India Four Two

24th Aug 2006, 16:36

I cannot believe that only Treadigraph included Catch 22. The opening sequence of birdsong at dawn being drowned out by engines starting, followed by a massed B25 takeoff is worth the price of the DVD alone. No CGI here.

Mercenary Pilot

24th Aug 2006, 20:28

Crash Landing: The Rescue of Flight 232 (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0104020)

Thanks for that, I have seen numerous documentaries, heard the CVR tapes and studied the NTSB report (and other related documents).

I had no idea anybody had made a movie about the Sioux City accident, hopefully it does justice to everybody involved on that fateful day.

Inverted81

24th Aug 2006, 20:36

You don't mean the one with Peter Cushing, do you??

Oh yes, living in tower bridge...
awful eh?

RabbitLeader

24th Aug 2006, 21:26

Oh yes, living in tower bridge...
awful eh?

I don't remember the Tiger Moths in it, but then I've not seen it in ages. I just remember the silver/black Stearman and the Stampe fitted with the rear-mounted Lewis gun.

Nogbad the Bad

24th Aug 2006, 21:34

By no means "good" films, but......

One is (I think) called "The Squadron" - anyway it features luscious colour shots of P47s.

Also there's a film starring Ephrem Zimbalist Junior about a mid-air (in which he comes off worse in a T33) - can't remember the name.

No one mentioned "Fail Safe" yet (NOT the remake) ?

As for "good" films, I must agree with TwelveO Clock High.....

...and no mention of "The Sound Barrier" - quick, push it forward :)

Amos Keeto

24th Aug 2006, 22:11

No one has mentioned:

Out of the Clouds
The Hunters
Strategic Air Command with James Stewart
Spirit of St. Louis also James Stewart

ORAC

25th Aug 2006, 08:00

Trinity's Child is a great novel by William Prochnau and was made into a TV movie, "By Dawn´s Early Light (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00021R7CG/104-4211926-9546310?v=glance&n=130)". Which isn´t as anywhere near as good as the book, but isn´t bad.

Be careful when buying it on DVD, there is a "Coming of Age" cowboy movie of the same name. Which if anybody wants an unwatched copy of..... :suspect:

Groundloop

25th Aug 2006, 08:20

Also there's a film starring Ephrem Zimbalist Junior about a mid-air (in which he comes off worse in a T33) - can't remember the name.

Is that "The Crowded Sky" with Dana Andrews as the DC-6 (or was it a -7, can't remember) pilot?

Haven't seen it for years but for some reason the two aircraft callsigns stick in my head - "Trans States 17" and "Navy Jet 8255"!

Nogbad the Bad

25th Aug 2006, 09:27

That's the one Loopy :ok: I think it's a DC7, but then again it probably hovers between the two - it's called "continuity" :}

NutherA2

25th Aug 2006, 09:33

[quote=Nogbad the Bad]By no means "good" films, but...
One is (I think) called "The Squadron" - anyway it features luscious colour shots of P47s.]

The title is "Fighter Squadron; in addition to the P47s the film also starred P51s (wearing swastikas), Edmond O'Brien & Robert Stack. If you pay really close attention you also get to see Rock Hudson's screen debut, but he didn't feature in the credits.