The performances of Robert Wagner and Steve McQueen aide in making this World War II psychological drama something a bit different than any other war movie that had come before. They are both excellent pilots, but when McQueen gets into the air, the desire to be a crackpot daredevil takes over him, not only risking the lives of all the men aboard or in plains nearby, but the mission as well. He has a reputation for being an excellent pilot, but psychologically, he's already damaged both in his private life and as an Airman. He's also very jealous of the love that McQueen finds with a beautiful British girl, Shirley Ann Field, making nasty cracks every chance he gets and stepping in to get his own piece of the pie when Wagner and Field call it quits.
The romantic aspect of the film does not at all get in the way of the film's main story, and in fact, it adds to it because they are both tied in with each other. Wagner and McQueen start off as very good friends, but there's a narcissism to McQueen's character that guides him in everything that he does, and while he could definitely be unlikable, there is a charm to him that prevents that. The air sequences are very good, and it seems very realistic as far as the war story line goes. But this appears to be long before they gave people in such positions psychological tests of detailed nature to see how leading pilots in missions like this are affected by things going on in their lives as well as how their personality plays in on their part on a mission. Certainly, McQueen makes enemies among his own allies, but through his performance, the viewer discovers that his biggest enemy is himself and not the other aiirmen or the enemy he supposed to be out to destroy. An above-average post-war movie that will keep the audience thinking long afterwards about its themes.
The romantic aspect of the film does not at all get in the way of the film's main story, and in fact, it adds to it because they are both tied in with each other. Wagner and McQueen start off as very good friends, but there's a narcissism to McQueen's character that guides him in everything that he does, and while he could definitely be unlikable, there is a charm to him that prevents that. The air sequences are very good, and it seems very realistic as far as the war story line goes. But this appears to be long before they gave people in such positions psychological tests of detailed nature to see how leading pilots in missions like this are affected by things going on in their lives as well as how their personality plays in on their part on a mission. Certainly, McQueen makes enemies among his own allies, but through his performance, the viewer discovers that his biggest enemy is himself and not the other aiirmen or the enemy he supposed to be out to destroy. An above-average post-war movie that will keep the audience thinking long afterwards about its themes.