On Saturday, August 26th, I saw the first public screening of "FLYBOYS" at the Warner Theatre in Torrington, CT.
For those of you who don't know the story of the Lafayette Escadrilles, they were a squadron of Americans who, during World War I, went to France before the US joined in the fight. The Escadrilles were trained there and flew missions against the Germans. They are credited with helping to stop the German advance into France in the early stages of the war.
James Franco plays Rawlings...a cowboy whose ranch has been foreclosed. As he's watching a newsreel about the Lafayette Escadrilles, the local sheriff tells him that he has an arrest warrant for him and tells him to leave town. Then we see the other pilots-to-be as they leave for France: the all-American guy with the pretty fiancée, the rich guy who's been a disappointment to his dad, the black American who is already in France making a living as a boxer, etc...
At the Escadrilles' airfield, they meet up with the Escadrilles leader, Captain Thenault (Jean Reno, who is really under-used in the movie) and Squadron Leader Cassidy. Cassidy is known for flying extra missions after their main missions, so that he can try to exact revenge for any pilots that they lost during the main missions (I actually found him to be more interesting than Rawlings).
They are dropped off at the American barracks, which is a mansion that's been taken over by the military. As soon as they get into the mansion/barracks, Rawlings is jumped by a young lion the Escadrilles' tame mascot "Whiskey" (which is a true part of the Escadrilles' history). Then we are shown the pilots' flight training in a fairly short montage which ends with each of them taking off on their first solo flights.
After that, their real missions begin. Their first mission is a bust when they are ambushed by the Germans, but with each following mission, the pilots improve. After awhile, they begin to earn the respect of the more seasoned pilots. As their missions continue, some of the pilots are killed and replaced by newbies with their own unique personalities, including a Bible-carrying Christian who sings "Onward Christian Soldiers" as he shoots down German planes (I liked this guy). There is also the cliché pilot who loses his nerve early on in the film, only to come back strong later (but this is still handled well).
We are introduced to the German ace Wolfert, who has the sense of honor and chivalry that other movies about World War I pilots always overplayed a bit too much for my liking. Thank God, Flyboys doesn't make the same mistake...they make it clear that Wolfert will kill the allied pilots when he has the chance. We are also introduced to the "Black Falcon", who is Wolfert's counterpart in the German squadron. He is sadistic and has no qualms about shooting a pilot who has crash-landed, walked away from his plane, and is no longer a threat. Although all of the Germans are the Escadrilles' enemies, the Black Falcon is the real "bad guy" in the movie. He is used sparingly in the film, but to good effect.
There is also a love story...and, just like most movies based on history...this love story is unnecessary for the telling of the Escadrilles' story. Rawlings meets a pretty French girl after he crashes during a training mission. Rawlings is taken with her, and tries to build a relationship with her. She is afraid of getting too attached to him, afraid that he's going to be killed in combat, but eventually she gives in to his advances (as if she wouldn't ...come on). The love story could have been worse, could have been more sappy, could have been Pearl Harbor, but it wasn't (at least I give the filmmakers credit for that).
Now, if you've seen the trailer for Flyboys, you've already seen glimpses of the high quality of the visual effects. I was reading that the movie cost somewhere around $60 million and these days, that amount of money doesn't usually lend itself to a visual effects-heavy movie. But this movie is LOADED with long visual effects sequences of the highest quality. Except for some shots of the pilots in the cockpits that you just KNOW were shot on a sound stage, everything else looks fantastic. The big scene with the zeppelin that is in the movie's trailer is great. The flight scenes in general are exciting and tense. The flight characteristics of the planes are very realistic, and they don't do anything that the real planes couldn't have done. Also, the sound effects and editing are fantastic. I'll say right now that this movie should easily be nominated for Oscars in the visual and sound effects/editing categories.
I know enough about the Escadrilles to know that the filmmakers didn't stray too far from historical reality (Tony Bill even mentioned that the black character wasn't in the film as the "token black guy"...the first black American fighter pilot WAS a part of the Escadrilles and except for in the beginning of the movie, they don't make a big deal out of it). Again, putting aside the love story part of the movie, the story is very well-told and the acting is solid. Even James Franco, who I have always found to be wooden in past films, seems relaxed and comfortable in his role as Rawlings, and he gets the job done (although I might have gone with someone less well-known who was just a better actor in general). The actor who played Cassidy (Martin Henderson) and Jean Reno are excellent (although Reno's role is a bit too small).
DON'T WAIT FOR THE DVD!! See this movie in a THEATER, to get the full effect of the amazing work done by the filmmakers.
For those of you who don't know the story of the Lafayette Escadrilles, they were a squadron of Americans who, during World War I, went to France before the US joined in the fight. The Escadrilles were trained there and flew missions against the Germans. They are credited with helping to stop the German advance into France in the early stages of the war.
James Franco plays Rawlings...a cowboy whose ranch has been foreclosed. As he's watching a newsreel about the Lafayette Escadrilles, the local sheriff tells him that he has an arrest warrant for him and tells him to leave town. Then we see the other pilots-to-be as they leave for France: the all-American guy with the pretty fiancée, the rich guy who's been a disappointment to his dad, the black American who is already in France making a living as a boxer, etc...
At the Escadrilles' airfield, they meet up with the Escadrilles leader, Captain Thenault (Jean Reno, who is really under-used in the movie) and Squadron Leader Cassidy. Cassidy is known for flying extra missions after their main missions, so that he can try to exact revenge for any pilots that they lost during the main missions (I actually found him to be more interesting than Rawlings).
They are dropped off at the American barracks, which is a mansion that's been taken over by the military. As soon as they get into the mansion/barracks, Rawlings is jumped by a young lion the Escadrilles' tame mascot "Whiskey" (which is a true part of the Escadrilles' history). Then we are shown the pilots' flight training in a fairly short montage which ends with each of them taking off on their first solo flights.
After that, their real missions begin. Their first mission is a bust when they are ambushed by the Germans, but with each following mission, the pilots improve. After awhile, they begin to earn the respect of the more seasoned pilots. As their missions continue, some of the pilots are killed and replaced by newbies with their own unique personalities, including a Bible-carrying Christian who sings "Onward Christian Soldiers" as he shoots down German planes (I liked this guy). There is also the cliché pilot who loses his nerve early on in the film, only to come back strong later (but this is still handled well).
We are introduced to the German ace Wolfert, who has the sense of honor and chivalry that other movies about World War I pilots always overplayed a bit too much for my liking. Thank God, Flyboys doesn't make the same mistake...they make it clear that Wolfert will kill the allied pilots when he has the chance. We are also introduced to the "Black Falcon", who is Wolfert's counterpart in the German squadron. He is sadistic and has no qualms about shooting a pilot who has crash-landed, walked away from his plane, and is no longer a threat. Although all of the Germans are the Escadrilles' enemies, the Black Falcon is the real "bad guy" in the movie. He is used sparingly in the film, but to good effect.
There is also a love story...and, just like most movies based on history...this love story is unnecessary for the telling of the Escadrilles' story. Rawlings meets a pretty French girl after he crashes during a training mission. Rawlings is taken with her, and tries to build a relationship with her. She is afraid of getting too attached to him, afraid that he's going to be killed in combat, but eventually she gives in to his advances (as if she wouldn't ...come on). The love story could have been worse, could have been more sappy, could have been Pearl Harbor, but it wasn't (at least I give the filmmakers credit for that).
Now, if you've seen the trailer for Flyboys, you've already seen glimpses of the high quality of the visual effects. I was reading that the movie cost somewhere around $60 million and these days, that amount of money doesn't usually lend itself to a visual effects-heavy movie. But this movie is LOADED with long visual effects sequences of the highest quality. Except for some shots of the pilots in the cockpits that you just KNOW were shot on a sound stage, everything else looks fantastic. The big scene with the zeppelin that is in the movie's trailer is great. The flight scenes in general are exciting and tense. The flight characteristics of the planes are very realistic, and they don't do anything that the real planes couldn't have done. Also, the sound effects and editing are fantastic. I'll say right now that this movie should easily be nominated for Oscars in the visual and sound effects/editing categories.
I know enough about the Escadrilles to know that the filmmakers didn't stray too far from historical reality (Tony Bill even mentioned that the black character wasn't in the film as the "token black guy"...the first black American fighter pilot WAS a part of the Escadrilles and except for in the beginning of the movie, they don't make a big deal out of it). Again, putting aside the love story part of the movie, the story is very well-told and the acting is solid. Even James Franco, who I have always found to be wooden in past films, seems relaxed and comfortable in his role as Rawlings, and he gets the job done (although I might have gone with someone less well-known who was just a better actor in general). The actor who played Cassidy (Martin Henderson) and Jean Reno are excellent (although Reno's role is a bit too small).
DON'T WAIT FOR THE DVD!! See this movie in a THEATER, to get the full effect of the amazing work done by the filmmakers.
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