ianlouisiana Review of Raiders in the Sky

Raiders in the Sky (1953)

Thoughtful,well made,with fine performances.Recommended.

[8/10 · 3 November 2008]

Unlike Fighter Command whose exploits were painted across the skies of Southern England during the endless summer of 1940,Bomber Command never caught the public imagination.These were not glamorous public school chaps with silk scarves and Brylcreemed hair downing a brace of Huns before tea,gleaming Spitfires and intrepid Hurricanes doing Victory Rolls whilst beating up the airfield as the Waafs waved out of the Control Tower.No,these were mainly working class grammar school boys sitting in freezing aluminium tubes, little more than lethal containers of H.E and volatile fuel,in the pitch dark 5 miles above Occupied Europe in skies full of white hot metal shards any one of which,at any second,could turn their aircraft into a fiery coffin.Some chewed the ends of pencils whilst calculating the target's co - ordinates on paper,some tracking the amount of fuel being used,others scanned the sky for enemy fighters.Some flew the plane which took considerable strength to keep on a straight and level course under ideal conditions,let alone being bounced around in a hazardous sky where your every instinct is to drop your bombs and race home ASAP.These men displayed dour,determined courage night after long night in a bitter war of attrition.A standard tour of operations consisted of 30 missions,their chance of survival a little over 30%. Wing Commander Mason (Mr D.Bogarde)has flown 87 missions,the equivalent of spitting in The Grim Reaper's face several times.He is determined to complete his third tour despite opposition from his Commanding Officer and the M.O."Appointment in London" tells the story of his fight to survive against all the odds. Superficially resembling the mighty "Twelve o' clock high",closer study reveals more differences than might be immediately apparent.Gregory Peck's character was imposed on a failing squadron whose popular C.O. suffered a breakdown,Mason has been on base for a long time and is well - liked and respected,Peck a martinet where Bogarde tolerates his pilots' horseplay,for instance.There is no doubt "Twelve o' clock high" is the superior movie,but that doesn't make "Appointment in London" a poor one. Much of the pleasure is in the supporting cast,Mr A.Shaw as "Smithy",the adjutant,a much older man,outwardly stuffy,a veteran of the Great War and a man who has seen too many airmen die to allow himself to become affected.Mr C.Victor as the village publican and confidant to aircrew,paternal and compassionate,a splendid bit of acting.Mr C.Singer in a customary senior NCO role as the Flight Sergeant in charge of the groundcrew who lend the planes to the fliers and hope they take good care of them and,last but not least Mr S.Kydd as the mechanic who finds his pilot's lucky charm and is confronted late at night by an angry Mr Bogarde.This is a key scene in the movie as Bogarde's anger(mainly against himself) manifests itself in an exchange that graduallly moves from aggression to awkwardness to genuine respect.It is beautifully played by these two fine actors. My only personal caveat with the film is the complete lack of anything resembling affection between Mr Bogarde and Miss D.Sheridan as the naval officer he falls in love with.I'm sorry I just didn't believe in them as a couple.No spark,no chemistry,no nothing.Maybe it's me. All round though,"Appointment in London" is a well - made,interesting and enjoyable film with lots of well - loved faces.I recommend that you watch it.