Review of The War Lover

Arguably "The War Lover",along with Len Deighton's "Bomber" is a top contender for the best novel written about the air war against Germany. I understand Mr Deighton has insisted on full control over any adaptation of his masterpiece - a proviso that has so far kept it out of the hands of the studios .Even a casual view of the movie version of "The War Lover" would seem to vindicate his position from a writer's point of view. Arthur Hornblow has made a good film about the USAAF's bombing campaign in Europe in much the same way as John Huston made a good film about catching whales out of "Moby Dick". The perennial problem of translating a work from one medium to another remains unresolved,quite possibly unresolvable unless a director resorts to a scene-for-scene adaptation.An ideal solution perhaps to salve the delicate ego of a novelist,but not to retain the attention of a moviegoer. Mr Hornblow settled for a no nonsense approach this story about a menage a trois in wartime England.Miss Shirley Anne Field is the object of affection for both Mr Bob Wagner and Mr Steve McQueen. Mr Wagner is the nice sensitive guy,Mr McQueen is the arrogant womaniser.As they both fly the same B17 this tends to put a strain on their relationship.Miss Field rather niftily steals the film from under the noses of her illustrious co - stars.The daughter of legendary British Music Hall comic Sid Field,she had beauty,brains and talent in abundance.The Film Industry's failure to make the most of this fine actress's abilities is scandalous. Mr Wagner does well as her original lover,introspective,with a quiet strength of character.Mr McQueen cleverly combines cockiness and vulnerability as the eponymous "War Lover",a character who - in the novel - lacked empathy to the extent of being almost sociopathic. But the iconic Big - Assed - Bird is the real star of the movie. Bloodied,battered but unbowed,the Flying Fortress brought back its crews time and again from the hostile skies over Europe,often with incapacitated pilots at the controls,almost as if it was willing itself to bring back safely its cargo of brave young men whose collective will and courage helped destroy Nazism. In the Grand Scheme of things,men like Buzz and Bo ,their personal affairs and their fate was of little consequence,but from time to time it is appropriate to remind ourselves that the Grand Scheme is made up of a lot of Little Schemes that involve individual human beings and their individual lives.That is what "The War Lover" does - and it does it rather well.