What are the best Warbird movies?

[Jerry O'Neill]

Ollie;
You're right about "Dark Blue World"
Excellent film and highly recommened to anyone on this thread!
Jerry

[DCogdon1]

Dark Blue World has me vote.

Is that the Movie you where telling about at Geneseo, the movie about the Czech Pilots during the Battle of Britain?

Tim

Great little movie, that.

This scene alone, showing two Spits attacking a train, cost as much as the director's first movie!!

[Bill Greenwood]

About 2 years ago a TV special movie came out called The Path To War. It is a war film, if not fully a warbird film. It is really well cast and acted with Donald Sutherland as a clone of Clark Clifford, Alec Baldwin as Mcnamara, and the actor who plays LBJ really catches his character including the crude parts. It's theme is the govt cabinet meetings and planning during the Vietnam War. It ought to be part of every school study of US govt & history. The response by Ho Chi Min to Johnson should not be missed.

[wwiiavfan]

Midway & Tora Tora Tora ---these are some of the first WWII movies that actually held my attention
Pearl Harbor --I just like seeing the birds in hi-res & the theatre sound. You just have to ignore the cheesy cockpit dialogue & shots of them reefing on the stick like a shovel handle. Oh yeah, and Kate Beckinsale ain't bad to look at, either.
1941 -- Belushi cracks me up as Wil Bill Kelso, but Slim Pickens makes the movie: "Jeeesus Palimino!!"
Top Gun -- Yes, I'm from that generation
Another one, the name escapes me, but it stars Kirk Douglas as the modern-day carrier skipper whose boat goes through a time warp to right before Pearl.

My tastes are a little eclectic!

[PhantomAce08]

Another one, the name escapes me, but it stars Kirk Douglas as the modern-day carrier skipper whose boat goes through a time warp to right before Pearl.

I believe that is "The Final Countdown." I just got it but haven't seen it yet. I did skip to the dogfighting scene and watched 2 Zeros take on 2 F-14 Tomcats! The F-14s are Jolly Rogers and look beautiful!

[Jerry O'Neill]

One of those Zeroes in "The Final Countdown" was being flown by none other than Marine Corps Ace, Archie Donahue.
Imagine, going all through WWII only to get shot down (and still survive) by an F-14!
Jerry

[Chris Brame]

Have to go with "Dive Bomber" - watching the restored Technicolor version is about as close to a time machine as we'll ever get. "Fighter Squadron" runs a close second. It's too bad "Test Pilot" and "I Wanted Wings" weren't in color as well...

[HELLDIVERS]

Hi Strategic Air Command, Wing and a Prayer, The War Lover, Twelve Oclock High, Flat Top. A Guy Named Joe. Top Gun, Above and Beyond and many more. Thanks Mike

[Warren_C]

The Blue Max
The Hunters
Lady takes a flyer

[Tigercat]

FIGHTER SQUADRON!

Many people have not seen this because it has only recently been available for purchase. It was made in 1947-48 at Selfridge(spelling?) Air Base in Michigan.

This movie stars Edmond O'Brien and Robert Stack with a non-speaking first Hollywood appearance of Rock Hudson.

The movie follows the daily events of a fighter squadron based in England during the war. Their are two things that make this movie particularly memorable:

1) They are flying P-47's----D's and N's I believe. There are tons of photo shots with formations, air to air of single planes, formation take offs, gun camera footage, etc., etc. Nice engine startups are shown plus actual gear-up landings.

2) The whole movie is filmed in COLOR so you get a little different feel for it.

There are a couple of cheesy subplots, but all in all it is a great movie----particularly visually.

Fighter Squadron used to be shown only once a year on TMC and that was on Edmond O'Brien' birthday in September. I was able to obtain a bootleg copy DVD recording from a friend. I understand that the movie is now available for purchase. Do a Google search and you will probably find a source.

[Tony]

The Battle of Britain.

Errrrrrrr that's it

[RickH]

Toward the Unknown with William Holden and Lloyd Nolan. Lots of early Edwards stuff.

The McConnell Story with Alan Ladd and June Allyson. Joseph McConnell biography

[phil65]

Thats that Brit movie were the guy finds a seaplane and goes after a germany sub in the area? I love that movie

[RickH]

Phil, it's called Murphy's War with Peter O'Toole

[Matt Gunsch]

Tigercat
TCM will be showing Fighter Squadron on the 17th at 10am AZ time.
Note, I use AZ time as our clocks run perfectly all year long and never need to be reset twice a year, unlike the rest of the country.