Customer Reviews

Air Force

5 star:		(20)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The legendary Howard Hawks directed this WWII classic about the Mary Ann, a B-17 bomber lead by Captain John Ridgely and featuring crew members Gig Young, Harey Carey, Arthur Kennedy, Charles Drake, George Tobias, Ray Montgomery, and John Garfield. On a routine mission to Hawaii, the crew arrives just hours after the Pearl Harbor attack and find themselves thrust into war. Other stops include Wake Island and the Philippines. Of course, one of the purposes of this film was to rally the American spirit, and it features some of the anti-Japanese dialogue you'd have to expect. But the film succeeds beyond the propaganda value. The action sequences are well filmed and exciting, with terrific aerial action and some good ground sequences, too. The camraderie amongst the crew is credible. Each member has his own small "back story" as you would expect, but these fine character actors make it all very believable (Harry Carey is a particular standout). This film is a true WWII classic.

While some paid reviewers would classify this film as archetypal and "hard to stomach" because of the political correctness of today, it is an excellent film about the early days of World War II and the crew of the B-17 bomber, "Mary Ann." This film is on par with what some consider the best air war film ever made, "Twelve O'clock High."

On their way to Pearl Harbor, a flight of B-17 bombers arrive at the height of the Japanese attack at the start of WW2. After landing they are told to refuel and fly on to the Philippines where they are to fight the Japanese. Many problems ensue but the crew pulls together and takes the fight to the Japanese. This is truly one of the best WW2 movies with lots of action and a relatively unknown cast...stars Harry Carey, Sr, a young John Garfield, and the B-17 "Mary-Ann". The interplay between crew members and the Marines in the Philippines is worth the price of admission alone. A long lost classic finally being released....DO Not miss this one..!!!

I was impressed the very first time I saw this film, and I enjoy watching it every year. A fine cast makes it believeable. The early hours of world war two. This film truly shows how unprepared we were, but also shows the dedication of our american servicemen.

An accurate portrayal of how unprepreparred the US was as World War II began. Harry Carey as the gruff, wily, mechanical genius reminds me a a real B17 crew chief I once knew.

Propaganda my eye!!....this is what it takes to win a war unconditionally....not like the past 50+ years of limited warfare...Air Force was the vanguard of epic WW2 movies and it ranks up there with any war film that followed...darn good cast with unheralded actor gets top billing, and rightly so...John Ridgely in his apex role of his career...even the starry John Garfield settled for a supporting role no less...wonderful supporting cast: Gig Young, Arthur Kennedy, James Brown, Harry Carey-Sr, Charles Drake, Stanley Ridges, Moroni Olsen, George Tobias, Addison Richards and Edward S. Brophy as the mud-Marine Gunner plus "Tripoli" [woof-woof]...sure it covers alot of battles to get it before the American people fast and once Japan was stopped at Guadalcanal [Aug1942]...our Armed Forces were on the road to Tokyo non/stop for TOTAL Victory...the studio bosses knew how to make real movies that galvanized the American way of life [ 1941-1955]...ever look around today to see how fragmented we are in politics and lack of love for our flag/country...let the other kid join up while you stay home...get rich...get fat and drugged out??....no siree, Air Force was the real America in every impacted scene you see to WIN!!...below, you read some of these other Reviews from an uneducated system...you guys weren't around in 1943 where heroic endeavors were common place accomplishments...not muder, rape, bestiality and everyday drug arrests smeared all over the headlines since the 1960s...God bless the WW2/Korea generation....anyone else finding fault with being a winner in 1941-1945??..."Get Lost"....Semper Fi, Mac.... SSGT CHRIS SARNO-USMC FMF

A movie that lifted the hearts of the home folks. John Garfield played pivitol role going from trouble maker to a dependable "team" player.

A must see film for everyone who had someone in the military during WW II.

Lots of action, suspense, thrill, bombs and camaraderie. Well packed war movie with fast pace action, good dialogue, growing in intensity as the story develops and amazingly well done settings that give plenty of realism. The dark scenarios along the film provide that gloomy and tragic feeling that matches those moments before and after Pearl Harbor. The cast does pretty well and their friendship on the B-17 is not just an accompaniment to the war scenes but grows with them.

It sure reveals the masterful hand of classic artisan director Howard Hawks. If not one of his greatest films it still is a very good one, and one of the very best war films ever.

What a great cast including John Garfield, Gig Young, Arthur Kennedy, Harry Carey and George Tobias. Garfield as always is full of a lot of raw energy. Howard Hawks is at home with a group of actors such as this aboard a B-17 straight dab at the start of WWII in the Pacific (I don't wish to give the plot away). James Wong Howe's cinematography is always brilliant and evocative of the desired mood intended for the rationale of the story. This film is full of great dialogue expounding the virtues of those values dearest to all Americans.

I saw "Air Force" for the first time the other night. Frankly, I had thought I'd seen or at least heard of the better WWII movies that were made in the 40's, 50's, and 60's. I'm not certain that this belongs in the category of "better" WWII movies but, if not, it's on the cusp. It does a great job of telling the story of the outbreak of WWII though they eyes of the crew of the "Mary Ann", a bomber that was in flight to Pearl Harbor on 12/6/41. Needless to say, they come on the scene just as the stuff hits the fan. After a brief stop, they head to Manilla by way of Wake Island. In case you don't know, those were the hot spots for the US at the beginning of WWII. They depart Manilla and discover a fleet of Japanese naval ships. They radio for help and the Battle of Midway ensues. At the end we see the surviving members ready to head off on a bombing mission over Tokyo.

I was impressed with the sense of historical perspective in how the movie was put together. Some of the chronology may have been stretched a wee bit. For example, the Battle of Midway came a few days too late, in my estimation, to have involved a US plane leaving Corregidor. However, I could be wrong. Anyway, the movie was a good recap of the war to that point ("Air Force" was released in 1943). I suppose that most people who saw "Air Force" in a theater pretty much knew most of this but were glad to get a more dramatic look at the events.

The acting was very good with a special nod to Harry Carey (who did, however, look like he should have been pensioned off 20 years earlier). Arthur Kennedy and George Tobias got my attention but the intentional anti-hero was John Garfield. Garfield was his usual cynical self who finally sees the light before the movie ends. (I sure hope THAT didn't spoil any surprise-you could see it coming a mile away). I was sure I caught a brief glimpse of William Hopper and it turned out to be correct. The acting was within the war-time dramatic tone but yet not overly done. The action scenes were good for that era (after all, the director was Howard Hawks) and the script was fairly decent (written by Dudley Nichols). The movie may have been a little long but I'm sure that it probably didn't seem that way in 1943. All in all, "Air Force" came across pretty good but it isn't the likes of "Objective Burma", "Sahara", "Sands of Iwo Jima" or a number of other WWII era movies that seemed to be running on more cylinders.