Customer Reviews

Call to Glory [VHS]

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

For those of us who went through high school in the early 1960's, or the service in that decade or the decade after, this is a wonderful, wonderful, film. Craig Nelson -- much, much, better than in his later "Coach" role -- captures a human decency, patriotism and, yet, sophistication, that shows how servicemen can be devoted to their country and yet not be jingoistic or overly simplistic. His family members -- particularly Cindy Pickett, who plays his wife -- live his military life but also lives of their own, and are perfectly human. The film also captures the news events of the era, particularly the Cuban Missile Crisis, by showing us again what we saw on TV, in large, black & white TVs, at the time.

For those who love flying and airplanes, this is great video -- my young son loves it -- but it's a lot more. This was the pilot for a TV series that lasted about one season. My family have many, but not all, of the TV episodes as well, and we watch them over and over again.

I can't say enough good things about this film, or the TV series that followed it.

1984's "Call To Glory" was an astonishingly good TV movie that sparked a short-lived TV series and is long overdue for conversion to DVD. It starred Craig T. Nelson as the commander of an Air Force Strategic Reconnaissance Wing flying U-2 spy planes over Cuba at the height of the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962.

"Call To Glory" is only partially about the flying. Nelson's family includes Cindy Pickett as his dutiful and loving wife, who shoulders with her husband the burdens of leadership in a business where husbands often don't make it home in time for dinner and sometimes don't make it home at all. A young Elizabeth Shue is Nelson's teenage daughter, navigating the difficult shoals of early adulthood. A middle son races jalopies at dirt tracks. The youngest son is reduced to silence by his secret terror that his father will someday not return from a flight. A live-in grandfather (Keenan Wyn) is a stunt pilot who secretly teaches the daughter to fly.

The Cuban Missile Crisis threatens to spiral into nuclear war, terrifying the families on the ground and creating a demand for increasing dangerous flights over a Cuba infested with Soviet surface to air missiles. The climax of the movie is a two-plane mission over Cuba, flown by Nelson with his best friend, that flies into a SAM ambush. Only one plane will make it back.

"Call To Glory" is an old-fashioned movie in the sense of unabashedly celebrating the simple values of people trying to do their best because it might be important to their families and maybe even to the whole country. It is very highly recommended as a lost gem of the small screen.

I suspect some things never change and Call to Glory may have taken place in the 1960s and during the Cold War, but the devotion to country and patriotism still exists today in our armed forces.

The movies shows the trials and travails of one fictional military family as they deal with the hardships of military life. Not every family wonders if dad will make it home after having a "tough day at the office."

A must see movie if you'd like a glimpse of what military life is like.

I religiously watched this show during my last year of high school. I watched "Call to Glory" for its accurate portrayal of the historical events of the 1960s--Vietnam, peace demonstrations, test flights on new jets--as well as for the rich culture of those times shown through the characters. Every actor and actress in the series was top-notch, the writing fit the characters and the time well, and the show made you think you were in that time experiencing the tumultuous events of war, peace, new subcultures right along with the Sarnaks.

This show really brings important historical and political events to life, and every episode should be available to everyone. Many of the episodes could be used in the school classroom.

So please, producers, executive producers, directors, and everyone involved in making and marketing this show: please create and release DVDs for all the episodes. We need a true patriotic show in these times of uncertainty with the Middle East. We need to be watching shows that inspire us as Americans. Please give that to us on a few DVDs of this too short-lived but wonderful show.

One of the best television series ever produced. Made a lasting impression. Rich in historical context, still important today. When will we see it on DVD?

I have always admired Craig T. Nelson. He is such a versitile actor. The TV series was outstanding. It was shot during the Viet Nam conflict. I wish it had been made available to the public. If anyone knows where to find it, please advise. This is the only copy of the VHS special edition I have ever been able to locate, and the story is outstanding.

I now have the complete COACH TV Series. I got all 25 discs from a company in Canada this month. Grab these hard-to-find DVDs as soon as you locate them. If you need an address, contact me: pacratflt@aol.com - Dave

I love this show and the cast were just wonderful, I watch it all the time. Craig T. Nelson, was just completely right for this part. He was sexy, tall and looked the part of a Air Force Colonel. A must!

this is a keeper buy today