Customer Reviews

Sky Fighters

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

 

 

I should begin by saying I have a querky style and I am an aviation nut, so movies that portray aviation will always get my attention. That said, I was more a fan of Iron Eagle than Top Gun in the 80's, and though this movie and Top Gun are oft mentioned together I think it sits neatly between Top Gun and Iron Eagle, and I liked Sky Fighters (or as I originally saw it, Les Chevaliers du ciel) a whole lot better. It certainly bests the recent film "Stealth" (which I saw, and consider a C- grade movie)

The story is somewhat thin, but at the same time not so far fetched; The attempted theft of a combat aircraft involves two of France's best pilots (wouldn't be a movie if they weren't)in a fairly complex terrorist plot. It also does not have a lot of air combat, dogfights, or stuff going 'ka-boom!' but it didn't bother me.

The acting was passable, and as they are European, I had no prior exposure to taint my opinion of them. The leads were just a bit more believable as pilots to me than Cruise and Kilmer

The places where the movie strays from a "paint by numbers" formula and towards goodness, are in the twists writer, Gilles Malençon added to the story, the time spent showing the main characters, "Walk'n" and "Fahrenheit" in situations outside of the cockpit, keeping other characters from just being action movies cliches; and the director(Gérard Pirès)'s attention to all the little details.

This film has some of (if not) the best flight, and aerial photography in an action movie. The jets and the actors' reactions in the cockpits were superb and believable and the little things that aficionados or real pilots would expect (or miss if they were left out) are there, and all of it truly sells the film's more exciting set pieces.

I abhor the term "popcorn movie" but as a thin guilty pleasure experience, this is definitely in my top ten, --so much so that I tracked the this film, and was very disappointed when it was not originally slated to be put out on a DVD outside of France or subtitled. I was willing to purchase the French DVD and settle for having my cousin from Canada translate it for me (I do not know or speak French) but when I came across this on Amazon, I was on cloud nine, (bad)pun intended.

I recommend this movie highly. If you like action movies involving combat jets you have to at least see this movie once.

Think Top Gun with a Gallic twist. Impressive air to air action and photography, real - instead of CGI flying scenes, and best of all, no blatant violations of the laws of physics. Although the dialog is dbuued into English, the dubbing is done extremely well, and does not detract from the overall viewing experience.
I highly recommend this movie to anyone who enjoyed Top Gun for its flying scenes.

The film centers around the Mirage 2000 and the French Air Force. I only gave this movie 4 out of 5 stars for two reasons. The first is the audio wasn't great. The timing between the lips and the sound is a little off. The second is because the story is only B movie quality. What really sets this movie apart from others is they used real shots of the jets and didn't use CGI. They weren't cheap about putting the planes in the movie either, you will see lots and lots of the Mirage 2000 in action as well as a few other planes. If you have a love of aviation you will really enjoy watching this movie, if nothing else just for the film work they did with the Mirage 2000. You will see the Mirage 2000 flying over spectacular scenary and doing amazing manuevers!
The creators of the film used a specially designed camera built inside a fuel pod of another Mirage 2000 to capture the aerial shots for the movie. Only another Mirage 2000 could keep up with the planes being filmed.

I'm an airplane nut - always have been. A buddy of mine came across the French title for this movie Les Chevaliers du Ciel and sent me a Wikipedia link. Once I found the movie through my on-line delivery service, I ordered it.

And I liked it.

Granted, the plot is pretty weak and could've been much better developed, also from what I know of the French language the translations for the dubbed version are a little "off." Something that would sound good in French just doesn't have the same ring to it in English. C'est la vie.

The aerial photography sequences are breathtaking. There were at least two shots where I said "Wow" out loud. The actors are passable (though the pilots carry their roles well), the plot some what weak, and the experience overall is at least as good as some of the poor re-makes that Hollywood seem intent on shoving down our throats. This movie isn't an Oscar winner, but like Top Gun it's enjoyable to watch despite not really capturing military or squadron life.

Four stars.

If you are interested in modern military airplanes, or want to enjoy the beautifully shot aerial photography, "Les Chevaliers du ciel" ("Sky Fighters") is a film for you. This French action film has plenty of flight scenes that are just exciting. Moreover, unlike some Hollywood films like `Stealth,' these scenes are not CGI.

Still I have to give only two stars to this because of its messy script that fails to make good use of the thrilling scenes. Don't get me wrong here because usually I would ignore any plot holes or corny dialogues as long as these demerits do not prevent us from enjoying the actions. Sadly, in "Sky Fighters" they certainly do and the weak plot and impossible situations seem to drag down the otherwise fantastic materials.

The story looks simple at first. One Mirage 2000 is stolen and two French air force fighter pilots try to stop it. The stolen Mirage keeps showing an intimidating move, however, doggedly following one of them, so Captain Marchelli (Benoît Magimel) shoots it down, disobeying the order from the ground. It turns out later that his decision might be wrong.

So far so good, but after that point the film begins to introduce too many things one after another, leaving the puzzled viewers far behind. Before any hints as to the stolen Mirage is given, director Gérard Pirès (responsible the original `Taxi") throws in anything that could be used as excuse for showing the flying sequences - air exercises, The Cannonball Run-like race and national security problem. Except for the shots of the air force fighters (including that of the camera inside the cockpit or the aerial cinematography over the city of Paris), there is nothing suspenseful or thrilling about the film and its conclusion is really anti-climax, nothing that would satisfy anybody.

Some people complain (with good reasons, I guess) that `Sky Fighters' resembles `Top Gun.' That is half true, half wrong. True because it features two daredevil pilots and their friendship (and love interest too). Wrong because it has a much more contrived and incredible plot that goes on and on without giving us any clue as to what we should follow in its muddled storyline. And no Meg Ryan and Kelly McGillis.

Sky Fighters is essentially a French version of Top Gun. It's a rousing military adventure, following two pilots in the French air force, as they deal with stolen aircraft, betrayals within their own department, and battles with terrorists. The plot is rather convoluted. After a failed operation, in which a plane is intercepted and wrongly shot down, the pilots are court-martialed on trumped up charges. They are offered a chance for reinstatement if they agree to a dangerous secret mission. In the process, they uncover both a terrorist plot and corrupt business dealings on the part of government officials. They are taken prisoner in the Libyan desert and nearly shot, before staging a daring escape, and valiantly defeating the terrorists in the sky. The film isn't subtle, just enjoyable. It works best in a visual sense, with gripping scenes of aerial combat. This edition is available both in French, with English subtitles, and in English; it works better in the original French.

So the story isn't as good as TopGun, but it's good and it has unbelievable flying video, and a lot of it. youtube some of the videos, and you'll see; and wanna buy it. It's absolutely amazing to watch, you'll wish you could fly!

"Man, that brunette can take my joystick anytime!" says French fighter pilot Fahrenheit Valois to his buddy, Walk'n Marchelli. There is no evidence that Jean-Luc Godard ever had the courage to write dialogue this heartfelt, much less direct a movie that...gasp...was as entertaining. Sky Fighters (Les Chevaliers du Ciel) is a fightin', flyin' French film that shows Top Gun a thing or two. Not only is the acting better (Benoit Magimel stars as Walk'n Marchelli), but the movie was made with the full cooperation of the French Air Force, down to assigning fighter pilots and their jets to take part. There's little or no CGC (Computer Generated Crud), just fast and dangerous flying where the laws of physics had better be respected.

It all starts at the Farnborough Airshow where arms dealers and manufacturers show off their high tech deadly toys and make deals with generals and, probably, terrorists. During one flyover a top-of-the-line Mirage 2000 suddenly breaks formation and departs for places unknown. Something rotten is going on because we saw the original pilot shot. Luckily, Walk'n and Fahrenheit (Clovis Corillac) are on air patrol off the North Sea. They spot the plane, carefully hiding itself just below an A380. Only the fifth contrail gives it away. Instead of landing as ordered, the pilot swings into action and nearly shoots down Fahrenheit. Only Walk'n's fast reflexes slam out his missile first. The rogue Mirage explodes and falls into the sea. Walk'n and Fahrenheit are heroes, right?

No, because now we're in the world of French Special Missions, which was testing how easily it would be for a terrorist to highjack a fighter at an air show. The cool, elegant Maelie Coste (Geraldine Paihas), who represents the French premier in Special Missions operations, doesn't know that a terrorist actually did it. Walk'n' and Fahrenheit are made scapegoats and are assigned to training duty. Then we learn there will be an intense one-on-one competition between a new French Mirage and a new American fighter for a big sales contract. In the middle of all this, Walk'n and Fahrenheit meet two hotshot American pilots who are in France for NATO training. Yes, they're women...Captain Estelle "Pitbull" Kass (Alice Taglione). and Captain Leslie "Stardust" Hedget (Rey Reyes). It's not long before the brunette Stardust and Fahrenheit are practicing barrel rolls together, but Pitbull and Walk'n, who had met before, are wary of each other.

Here's the deal. The American fighter and the French fighter, each with two fighters along side, will leave from separate bases to fly more than a 1,000 miles with no clearances, no advance notice, across the Mediterranean, over an unfriendly Libya, with mid-air refueling down to East Africa and over "enemy" territory. The first fighter to cross the target undetected will win the contract. And off we go. Walk'n is flying the new Mirage, accompanied by Fahrenheit and Pitbull. But along the way things go wrong...terribly wrong. At an isolated airstrip where they were forced to land with no fuel, they find vicious mercenaries. Pitbull is smacked around and taken away for evening entertainment. Walk'n and Fahrenheit are smacked around, chained, and stuck in a ramshackle hut.

What's going on? All I can say is that they'd better escape fast. Terrorism and treason are in the air...and there are going to be a lot of world leaders meeting in Paris in a few days. Part of the ceremonies will include high-performance Mirage fly-overs...just the place for a rogue Mirage to fit in. It's likely that only Walk'n's and Fahrenheit's bravery, initiative and flying skills can save the day. Plus Maelie Coste's realization, at last, of the shocking truth.

Is this movie anything but glossy, exciting entertainment? Nope. The story is smile-worthy but not, unfortunately, improbable. The acting is better than you'd expect. The flying scenes, whether getting from place to place or aerial combat, are first rate. I'm fairly sure Jean-Luc Godard refused to have anything to do with Walk'n Marchelli and Fahrenheit Valois. But then he also probably refused to have anything to do with Maverick Mitchell and Iceman Kazansky. Thank goodness that in the real world there is room for meaningful films and meaningless entertainment. If only we could always tell the difference.

If you're an aviation enthusiast this is a great foreign film that will be right up your alley. The audio is dubbed, but the action and cinematography of the aircraft is second to none! I wouldn't even compare it to the classic nature of Top Gun. This is a modern film, captured with new cameras and a plot that is applicable to today. I highly recommend for scenery alone!

I bought the dvd after seeing this - [...]

Here's a smoother version - [...]

This is no Top Gun, and I don't think they wanted it to be, the story is weak, but the flying was done very well, you will believe the actors are flying the planes, mainly because they are really in them, filmed in the rear seat while a real pilot flies. They tried this with Top Gun but the cast spent more time passed out or throwing up.

Spoiler Alert: The movie starts off with an air show, the pilot of a new Mirage 2000 plane gets kidnapped and killed at the air port (if you blink you will miss this part, it was shot a long way off and blurry, I missed it the 1st time and the story really didn't make since). Then when the plane veers from the flight plain, our hero and his wingman/buddy are dispatched to intercept. Good flight scenes, the Rogue pilot positions behind wingman/buddy and right before he takes the shot Rogue is blown out of the sky by our hero. Nice job, but not for our Hero, he was ordered to hold his fire, because the government set up the whole stealing to start off with, (however remember that the real pilot was kidnapped and killed). So Rogue pilot was stealing the plane and was going to shoot wingman/buddy, but at this time in the movie no one knows about Rogue pilot, our Hero believes he shot down a friendly, but sticks to his guns as to Rogue firing on Wingman/buddy. See if you blinked how lost you would be right now. Watch it for the rest of the story.

This movie has the only shot ever of a real plane breaking the sound barrier at 100 feet off the runway in a movie. It is a cool shot with the air pressure wave building up in front of the plane. The flying is awesome up until the ending where toy stunt planes were brought in. I liked this movie because it shows what flying a jet would be like, a lot of amazing cockpit and aerobatic views. Watch it for the flying not for the story, which was not bad it was just weak.

The Hero,French actor Benoit Magimel carriers the movie very well, you really get to like this guy, his wingman/buddy played by Clovis Cornillac is the distinctive funny sidekick. Some of woman in the film are over the top and the basic girl next door. No drop dead jaw dropping super models in tight jump suits, however there is a strip scene with one of the ladies. Not bad.