Favorite RAF Movies

[Cigarband]

As a side note, while filming 633 Squadron in 1963, actor Cliff Robertson picked up a little souvenir in the form of an ex Belgian Spitfire IX! You can read about it here, very interesting story, to bad she is now grounded! http://www.jerrybilling.com/Jerry%20Billing%20Spitfire's/History%20of%20Spitfire%20MK923.htm

I also read somewhere that Robertson wanted to buy a Mosquito, but "the Powers that be" wouldn't let him.

 

[Cigarband]

Ye Gods chaps! How come no one mentioned "Reach for the Sky" - the Douglas Bader story?! Wonderful film with Kenneth More playing Sir Douglas.

For those of you who don't know of the British Spitfire and Hurricane ace - who continued to fly after losing both legs in a flying accident in 1931, and went on to become one of WWII's leading aces - see the article here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Douglas_Bader

His daughter, Virginia Bader, is in the Aviation Art business.http://www.virginiabader.net

 

[Edw8ri]

This is an easy question for me to answer. The Battle of Britain. Where else will you find such a collection of Spits, Hurricanes, and Messerschmidts? It would not be possible to remake that movie today.

 

[Stearmen]

Hispano HA1112

I watched The Battle Of Briton this weekend. I love the seens with the Hispano HA1112 Spanish Messerschmitts! The low down passes were performed by four members of the Confederate Air Force. One Connie Edwards took eight of the Hispanos as trade for his work, six are still down in his hanger in Texas as far as I know, not for sale! Contrary to popular opinion, the Merlin engine does not turn in the opposite direction from the Daimler-Benz engine, they both turn clock wise as seen from the cockpit! After the war, Hispano could not get Daimler-Benz engines, so they put in Hispano V12 engines, which turned counter clock wise, and they offset the vertical stabilizer to the appropriate angle. When Hispano quit making their engines, Spain sent a desk jockey to acquire some Merlins. The Rolls representative in a pleasant English manner asked, "which way would you like the propeller to turn?" The Spanish officer replied, "in the normal direction" clockwise it is! For some reason Hispano did not reset the vertical stabilizer for the different rotation of the prop! The Hispanos are considered the worse of the bunch to fly! Almost all have been in accidents, from simple ground loops, to fatal crashes! Ray Hanna, a very experienced warbird pilot died in one. I new a WWII Bf109 pilot, he said all the time you were taxing, and during take off, the plane would be saying, "I'm going to get you, I'm going to get you" once the plane rotated and the wheels were comming up the Bf109 would then say, "don't worry, I'll get you when we land!"

 

[Henry Hughes]

Both "The Dam Busters" and "Battle of Britain" are terrific films that give an accurate portrayal of the RAF. Couldn't go wrong with either of those. Haven't seen any of the others but they all sound well as well.

 

[Sam Craig]

But a date movie?

I, too, have long loved Battle of Brittain, but I'd forgotten until recently that I once used it for a date monie.

It was when it was a new release and our old downtown theater was showing it..

I was in junior high and picked up a girl who was also a friend, and we went to the movies.

She reminded me recently that it was NOT her dream date.

Hey, loved it then, love it now!

She got over it ... and me, too, for that matter.[huh]

 

[USAAFAcePilot]

Man, I LOVE Battle of Britain! Awesome film! Well made too! :eusa_clap

 

[Stearmen]

The GUINEA PIG CLUB

One thing that struck me as I watched The Battle of Britten a couple of weeks ago, was the realism that was creeping into films of that time frame! Showing blood, and the pilot desperately trying to get out of his burning Spitfire. The most startling is when the leading blond is at the radar station, and meets one of her husband ex squadron mates, then she sees that he is badly disfigured from his burning plane! I do not think they showed that in earlier films. During the 50th anniversary of the BOB, BBS did a lot of interviews, the most moving was with members of The GUINEA PIG CLUB, pilots that were badly disfigured from fire or Prestone burns! Plastic surgery for burns was very new since before the war most burn patients died. One member said, the older he got the uglier he got, and that he scared children on trains! Not all that come home are whole!

 

[USAAFAcePilot]

Stearmen, you are right. Definitely gets to you how real BoB is and the small details, like the pilot desperately trying to unlatch the cockpit of his Spit so that he can bail out. This stuff REALLY makes a difference.

 

[Mr. Godfrey]

Not in any particular order:
Battle of Britain
633 Squadron
Dambusters
Piece of Cake (mini-series)
Target For Tonight
Dark Blue World
First of the Few (known as "Spitfire" in the US)
One of Our Aircraft is Missing

I'm sure there are more that I just can't think of right now.

All of these but I would have to add "The Great Escape" and "Angels One Five" and possibly "The Malta Story" but the Great Escape has to be a classic RAF based film IMHO.

 

[McCurry]

Dambusters... i watched it over 20 times ...

 

[Ronald]

Battle of Britain ofcourse.... and The Great Escape.

 

[Marla]

Battle of Britain ofcourse.... and The Great Escape.

The Great Escape is fantastic--a pretty accurate depiction of the real events. It's my favorite WWII movie, period. The book is even better though. It doesn't have that Hollywood touch like the movie. The bit when Steve McQueen is zooming around on the motorcycle with the Nazis in pursuit is so unconvincing it's almost a fantasy sequence.

 

[Ronald]

Steve McQueen wanted to do a motorbike chase in the movie. If the filmdirectors didn't give him that, he wouldn't have signed up for the movie either. Glad they did and a classic movie was made. And there my love for the A2 jacket started.

 

[Talbot]

Stearmen, you are right. Definitely gets to you how real BoB is and the small details, like the pilot desperately trying to unlatch the cockpit of his Spit so that he can bail out. This stuff REALLY makes a difference.

Michael Caine presents a documentary on the making of the film. I have to keep reminding myself that when they made the film, it would be like making a film about something that happened in 1980 today.

My favourite scene is where Edward Fox is shot down and falls into a backyard garden glass house on his parachute. A little boy emerges from the house and offers him a cigarette. "Thanks awfully old boy" is the reply to the beaming child.

 

[Smithy]

My favourite scene is where Edward Fox is shot down and falls into a backyard garden glass house on his parachute. A little boy emerges from the house and offers him a cigarette. "Thanks awfully old boy" is the reply to the beaming child.

I always get a smile from that as well Talbot.

I have one more favourite to add now that I have seen it to my list from the 1st page of this thread:

"First Light" - the adaptation of Geoffrey Wellum's memoirs which was released in September. Absolutely bloody brilliant.

 

[Zig]

My RAF movie list is: (in no order)

Battle of Britain - Spitfires - Hurricanes
Eagle Squadron - Spitfires
Dambusters _ Lancasters
Piece of Cake - Spitfires
Dark Blue World - Spitfires
The Great Escape - RAF P.O.W. Escape
The Wooden Horse - RAF P.O.W. escape
Appointment in London - Lancasters
Stairway to the Stars - All kinds of stuff
633 Squadron - Mosquitos
Mosquito Squadron - Mosquitos
The Purple Plain - Mosquitos
Captains of the Clouds - RCAF Training - Hudsons - Harvards
Angles One Five - Hurricanes
Target for Tonight - Lancasters or Halifax's
For the Moment - RCAF Training
A Yank in the RAF - Spitfires
International Squadron - Spitfires
Son of Lassie - Blenheims
Spitfire - Spits
One of Our Aircraft is Missing - Lancaster - evaders
Journey Together - RAF/RCAF Training - Lancasters- etc
The Sea Shall not Have Them -
School of Secrets - Radar
The Flemish Farm - Hurricanes
Thunder Birds - RAF Training in Arizona
Dangerous Moonlight - Spitfires
Pathfinders - TV Series - Lancasters
The Brylcreem Boys - RAF members interned in Ireland
Stalag Luft - Comedy of RAF P.O.W.s escaping
Flight Lieutenant - RAF B-17's
Desperate Journey - Lancaster - Hudsons - evaders
Malta Story - Spitfires
Eagles Over London - British 109's against German Spitfires - wierd

There are a couple others also, can't remember the names off hand.
One is Tom Hanks in the Middle East, falling for a local girl. RAF P-51's
Another is RAF P-40's in the Africa Desert, damaged P-40 taxiing, being chased around by Loyd Bridges as a German Tank commander.