1990 Directed by Michael Caton-Jones
The "Memphis Belle" is a World War II bomber, piloted by a young crew on dangerous bombing raids into Europe. The crew only have to make one more bombing raid before they have finished their duty and can go home. In the briefing before their last flight, the crew discover that the target for the day is Dresden, a heavily-defended city that invariably causes many Allied casualties
Warner Bros. Pictures County Natwest Ventures Enigma Pictures Fujisankei Communication Group British Satellite Broadcasting (BSB)
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Absolutely as good as classic RAF/WW2 pictures made during the actual conflict; has the terrific VFX and stacked cast of faces of THIRTY SECONDS OVER TOKYO and the simple melodrama and formal economy of IN WHICH WE SERVE (Lean is clearly an influence here too). At the end even the dog is excited, and it has photocall credits!
About half an hour into 1990's Memphis Belle is a shot of a military truck. It's heading towards an airfield with all 10 crew of the tituler famous plane looking out into a potentially dark future and I was impressed with how much I knew about all of them, both individually and of their relationships with each other. Director Michael Caton-Jones knew that for us to be invested in what follows, we had to understand and like this group, even just a little bit.
For the remainder of this fuss-less, spirited movie we're inside, at the front of, the back of, the sides, above and below the flying fortress with each of the nervy crew assigned a specific role and…
Yeah, Luke. Why go back to the daily grind of being a lifeguard? Take it easy!
Heartfelt and deeply emotional, Memphis Belle retells the true story of the American pilots during WWII, who successfully flew twenty-five flights and returned with all the original crew. Whilst the movie dramatises the story by showcasing how the final mission before returning home had severe complications, it’s crafted in a respectful manner, and conveys the reality of war on the world. It sounds like a movie that’s serious and complex, and whilst it’s definitely melancholic and heart-wrenching at times, the charm of the cast and comedic script are enough to make the story one of enlightenment and inspiration. This doesn’t mean to say the movie…
Anyway, a pilot gets shot down. The guy bails out and the gestapo gets him. His leg is broken, so they have to amputate. He says, "Do me a favor. After you cut it off, give it to one of your pilots and have him drop it over my base in England." And they do it.
Rascal, don't tie up the intercom.
Wait, this is a quick one. The next week, they cut off his other leg. He says again, "Will you drop it over my base in England?" And they do it. The next week, they gotta cut off his arm. He asks them one more time, "Will you please drop it over my base in England?" This time,…
Surprisingly, the big budget Hollywood story of the Memphis Belle isn't actually as thrilling as the groundbreaking wartime documentary the film is based on. There's just something visceral about the images Wyler captured during the war that just isn't matched here. It's all a little too fast and clean; not edited together quite as effectively. Still, it's a solid war film. The combat is just as fast paced and random as you imagine real WW2 air combat would've been (making it even crazier to imagine Wyler up there with a camera, running around filming things alongside them). The rickety old plane shakes and rattles as it relentlessly ploughs on with its mission, making you feel the stakes at every moment.…
Memphis Belle is a somewhat surprisingly heartfelt tale of camaraderie in the isolationist hell that is the crew of a WWII Bomber. An entertaining cast of likeable talent making up the individual positions leads to a human element you can't really replicate in other films like it. By the halfway mark as the crew are being driven to their Flying Fortress singing Amazing Grace you understand and feel for each and every one of them as they go forward towards their dark and uncertain future. Solid visual effects, a beautifully rousing score and tight claustrophobic direction further help capture the true heroism of the crews its the titular aircraft.
I hadn't seen Memphis Belle in years, well over a decade in fact. Watching it again today I was reminded of when it first came out; a mate of mine at school often used to get a bit of stick for not owning a video and never going to the cinema. He always said he'd see whatever blockbuster was gripping us all 'in five years time' when they would eventually arrive on TV. When talk turned to Memphis Belle on its release, he said he'd seen William Wyler's 1944 propaganda film of the same name (Channel 4 had broadcast it one weekend when it was out at the cinema) and so didn't need to watch this new film at all…
It's been almost four years since I first saw this and although it was still a decent enough story it lost something on this rewatch.
Michael Caton-Jones delivers a WWII war movie set in the skies over Germany. Focusing on the fictionalized story of the "Memphis Belle" a B-17 American bomber and it's crew who became heroes by being the first to complete their 25 mission tour of duty. Featuring a young cast that includes Matthew Modine (post -Full Metal Jacket), Eric Stoltz (pre-Pulp Fiction), Sean Astin (pre-Middle Earth) Billy Zane(pre-hair loss) and D.B.Sweeney (pre-working at McDonalds or wherever he is ) this does strive for authenticity. It has the music and language of the time and does it's best…
I love this movie, seriously I know it is totally historically inaccurate, but never let the truth get in the way of a good story. This completely fictionalized account of the final mission of the Memphis Belle has everything you want, comedy, action, drama, and even some singing and romance to go along. What is most important is how I love this cast, whether it’s the boys of the Belle or David Strathairn and John Lithgow. I am not going to say it’s up there for best war movies of all time, but honestly it is one of my personal favorites. I have seen it many, many times, and will watch it just about any chance I get. Not really sure what else to say other than I love this film.
A childhood favourite of mine since my dad gave me the VHS even when VHS tapes were out of fashion.
We both wanted to revisit it and see it in HD so we ended up buying the blu-ray to see how it holds up now. So does it?
I'm glad, and little surprised, to say yeah, I think it holds up.
It's perhaps not the best-paced of war films (however I think the opening scenes' primary purpose is to flesh out the characters to some extent as well as familiarise the audience with the periodic context) as the first half seems a lot longer than the second but once you've pretty much gotten to know everyone, it does pick up…
The writers on Memphis Belle had a tough job. The true story is about a plane that flew 25 successful bombing missions in WWII. So, first of all, how do you ratchet up the drama when the whole point of the story isn't what the plane did, but what it didn't do (explode). Second, how do you even structure this story? Show the gang getting together and then do quick hit montages of the 25 missions over the course of the war? Maybe, but then you face the problem of repetition--a successful bombing mission, while awesome, probably looks like a another successful bombing mission from the inside of the plane.
This film's good idea is to summarize the story of…
