Flying Movies
Movies with a central theme of flying - (still being built)
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- DirectorGeorge SeatonHenry HathawayStarsBurt LancasterDean MartinGeorge KennedyA bomber on board an airplane, an airport almost closed by snow, and various personal problems of the people involved.Best of the series - slight flaws
- DirectorJim AbrahamsDavid ZuckerJerry ZuckerStarsRobert HaysJulie HagertyLeslie NielsenAfter the crew becomes sick with food poisoning, a neurotic ex-fighter pilot must safely land a commercial airplane full of passengers.Parody of drama Zero Hour. Best parts are veteran actors like Lloyd Bridges, Leslie Nielsen, & Robert Stack cutting loose and going over the top. Great part by Sonny Bono.
- DirectorKen FinklemanStarsRobert HaysJulie HagertyLloyd BridgesA faulty computer causes a passenger space shuttle to head straight for the Sun. Can Ted Striker save the day and get the shuttle back on track - again?Veteran actors Lloyd Bridges, Chuck Connors, & Bill Shatner cutting loose and going over the top.
- DirectorJack SmightStarsCharlton HestonKaren BlackGeorge KennedyA 747 in flight collides with a small plane, and is rendered pilotless. Somehow the control tower must get a pilot aboard so the jet can land.Silly twist on the Crowded Sky using same plot and many of the same actors. Efrem Zimbalist Jr. & Dana Andrews virtually switch roles from the earlier movie.
- DirectorJerry JamesonStarsJack LemmonLee GrantJoseph CottenArt thieves hijack a 747, hit fog and crash into the ocean, trapping them and the passengers under one hundred feet of water.Stupid
- DirectorDavid Lowell RichStarsAlain DelonSusan BlakelyRobert WagnerA supersonic airborne disaster. In order to survive a flight headed for the Moscow Olympics, passengers of the Concorde must endure aerial acrobatics to dodge missiles and survive a device that decompresses the plane.Ridiculous - Only watch it if you need a laugh over the incredibly stupid plot, if it can be called that. Totally illogical, Makes Airport 1975 and Airport '77 almost look realistic in comparison.
- DirectorWilliam A. WellmanStarsJohn WayneLloyd NolanWalter AbelA C-47 transport plane, named the Corsair, makes a forced landing in the frozen wastes of Quebec, and the plane's pilot, Captain Dooley, must keep his men alive in deadly conditions while waiting for rescue.John Wayne at his best
- DirectorWilliam A. WellmanStarsJohn WayneClaire TrevorLaraine DayWhen a commercial airliner develops engine problems on a trans-Pacific flight and the pilot loses his nerve, it is up to the washed-up co-pilot Dan Roman to bring the plane in safely.Convoluted and contrived
- DirectorJoseph PevneyStarsDana AndrewsRhonda FlemingEfrem Zimbalist Jr.Disaster movie about a Navy jet and a commercial airliner heading for a mid air collision.Same actors and plot device used in Airport 1975. Efrem Zimbalist Jr. & Dana Andrews virtually switch roles in Airport 1975. This one at least has some realistic aspects to it.
- DirectorWolfgang PetersenStarsHarrison FordGary OldmanGlenn CloseCommunist radicals hijack Air Force One with the U.S. President and his family on board. The Vice President negotiates from Washington D.C., while the President, a veteran, fights to rescue the hostages on board.
- DirectorWilliam A. WellmanHarry d'Abbadie d'ArrastStarsClara BowCharles 'Buddy' RogersRichard ArlenTwo young men, one rich, one middle class, who are in love with the same woman, become fighter pilots in World War I.
- DirectorHoward HughesEdmund GouldingJames WhaleStarsBen LyonJames HallJean HarlowBrothers Monte and Ray leave Oxford to join the Royal Flying Corps. Ray loves Helen; Helen enjoys an affair with Monte; before they leave on their mission over Germany they find her in still another man's arms.Hammy acting but EXCELLANT Air Sequences!!!
- DirectorHenry KingStarsGregory PeckHugh MarloweGary MerrillA tough-as-nails general (Gregory Peck as General Savage) takes over a B-17 bomber unit suffering from low morale and whips them into fighting shape.Strong Gregory Peck vehicle. Shows the toll taken on commanders sending men to their deaths.
- DirectorSam WoodStarsClark GableWalter PidgeonVan JohnsonArmy generals struggle with the decision to prioritize bombing the German factories producing new jet fighters over the extremely high casualties the mission will cost.More High Level orders than flying but nice companion piece to Twelve O'clock High.
- DirectorJohn GuillerminStarsGeorge PeppardJames MasonUrsula AndressA young pilot in the German air force of 1918, disliked as lower-class and unchivalrous, tries ambitiously to earn the medal offered for 20 kills.Great flying sequences.
- DirectorTony BillStarsJames FrancoJean RenoJennifer DeckerThe adventures of the Lafayette Escadrille, young Americans who volunteered for the French military before the U.S. entered World War I, and became the country's first fighter pilots.Even though CGI work, flying sequences pretty good.
- DirectorKen AnnakinStarsStuart WhitmanSarah MilesJames FoxHoping to push Britain to the forefront of aviation, a London publisher organizes an international air race across the English Channel, but must contend with two entrants vying for his daughter, as well as national rivalries and cheating.Great Pioneer Aircraft Display!!!
- DirectorRobert AldrichStarsJames StewartRichard AttenboroughPeter FinchAfter an oil company plane crashes in the Sahara, the survivors are buoyed with hope by one of the passengers, an airplane designer who plans for them to build a flyable plane from the wreckage.The classic version - NOT the remake!
- DirectorBilly WilderStarsJames StewartMurray HamiltonPatricia SmithCharles 'Slim' Lindbergh struggles to finance and design an airplane that will make his New York to Paris flight the first solo transatlantic crossing.Pilot and Combat Flyer Jimmy Stewart really shines in these Aviation films.
- DirectorWilliam WylerStarsStanley WrayRobert MorganJames A. VerinisA documentary on the 25th bombing mission of the Memphis Belle, a B-17 in the US 8th Air Force.Documentary about actual plane and crew, Wartime propaganda but that is NOT a derogatory thing. Was a morale booster needed during the war.
- DirectorMichael Caton-JonesStarsMatthew ModineEric StoltzTate DonovanIn 1943, the crew of a B-17 based in the UK prepares for its 25th and final bombing mission over Germany before returning home to the USA.Fictional account of Memphis Belle
- DirectorVictor FlemingStarsSpencer TracyIrene DunneVan JohnsonA dead World War II bomber pilot, Pete Sandidge becomes the guardian angel of another pilot, Ted Randall. He guides Ted through battle and helping him to romance his old girlfriend, despite her excessive devotion to Sandidge's memory.Spencer Tracey, Van Johnson, Irene Dunn, Ward Bond in supernatural WWII tale.
- DirectorSteven SpielbergStarsRichard DreyfussHolly HunterBrad JohnsonThe spirit of a recently deceased expert pilot mentors a newer pilot while watching him fall in love with the girlfriend that he left behind.Remake of A Guy Named Joe - redone as fire/water bombers but still with a supernatural theme. Nicely done. I especially liked Holly Hunter & John Goodman.
- DirectorHoward HawksStarsRichard BarthelmessDouglas Fairbanks Jr.Neil HamiltonWorld War I ace Dick Courtney derides the leadership of his superior officer, but Courtney is soon promoted to squadron commander and learns harsh lessons about sending subordinates to their deaths.Douglass Fairbanks Jr
- DirectorEdmund GouldingStarsErrol FlynnBasil RathboneDavid NivenBritish flying aces in World War I contend with the harsh realities of war.Errol Flynn remake of 1930 movie. WWI Combat veteran Basil Rathbone's relief at being replaced as the Squadron Leader and not having to decide who may die or not is a nice turn.
- DirectorGuy HamiltonStarsMichael CaineTrevor HowardHarry AndrewsIn 1940, the British Royal Air Force fights a desperate battle to prevent the Luftwaffe from gaining air superiority over the English Channel as a prelude to a possible Axis invasion of the U.K.One of the great War Epics and a tribute to the participants of that crucial battle.
- DirectorHall BartlettStarsDana AndrewsLinda DarnellSterling HaydenIn 1950s Canada, during a commercial flight, the pilots and some passengers suffer food poisoning, thus forcing an ex-WWII fighter pilot (Dana Andrews) to try to land the airliner in heavy fog.Airplane is a direct spoof of this drama
- DirectorWilliam A. GrahamStarsJack LordEdmond O'BrienKatherine CrawfordA bomb on board an airliner has an altitude-sensitive trigger. Unless a ransom is paid, it will explode when the plane descends to land.Actually had the FAA calling for it to be suppressed.
- DirectorIrwin AllenStarsRed ButtonsFabianBarbara EdenIn 1862, the British commission inventor Fergusson to claim uncharted land in West Africa for Britain by flying his giant hot air balloon there.
- DirectorJ. Walter RubenStarsRichard DixElizabeth AllanRalph BellamyA sculptor who doesn't want to have any part of World War I is shamed by his girlfriend into joining the army. He becomes a fighter pilot, and undergoes a complete personality change.Richard Dix
- DirectorStuart WalkerMitchell LeisenStarsFredric MarchCary GrantJack OakieThe pilots of a Royal Air Force squadron in World War I face not only physical but mental dangers in their struggle to survive while fighting the enemy.Fredric March & Cary Grant - NOT to be confused with 1950 Western of same name.
- DirectorLeslie NormanStarsMichael RedgraveSheila SimAlexander KnoxOn a routine flight from Hong Kong to Japan, a British military transport aircraft's fate may or may not depend on a prophetic nightmare.Nice British Flying movie with a Clairvoyance twist
- DirectorLewis GilbertStarsKenneth MoreMuriel PavlowLyndon BrookBiopic of RAF Group Captain Douglas Bader who, after having lost both legs, flew a British fighter plane during WWII.Biography of the Incredible Douglas Bader - Double Amputee Fighter Ace! Gave it a 10 because of the subject matter!!!
- DirectorRoger SpottiswoodeStarsMel GibsonRobert Downey Jr.Nancy TravisA young pilot finds himself recruited unwittingly into a covert and corrupt CIA airlift operation in Laos during the Vietnam conflict.Great Flying sequences! Mel Gibson and Robert Downey Jr. do a fine buddy film
- DirectorDick PowellStarsRobert MitchumRobert WagnerRichard EganIn 1952, during the Korean War, two American pilots become bitter enemies over the same woman but must shelf their personal feud when confronted by deadly Chinese MIG fighter jets in battle.USAF Pilots in Korea - Robert Mitchum (41), Richard Egan (37), and Stacy Harris (40) look a bit old to be playing fighter pilots in Korea in 1952. "Pappy" Boyington was 32 when WW II ended. Fighter pilots back then tended to be on the young side, including their commanders.
- DirectorMark RobsonStarsWilliam HoldenGrace KellyFredric MarchSet during the Korean War, a Navy fighter pilot must come to terms with with his own ambivalence towards the war and the fear of having to bomb a set of highly defended bridges. The ending of this grim war drama is all tension.USN Pilots in Korea. Retread Pilot William Holden would be around 36 years old in 1954.
- DirectorMervyn LeRoyStarsSpencer TracyVan JohnsonRobert WalkerIn the wake of Pearl Harbor, a young lieutenant leaves his expectant wife to volunteer for a secret bombing mission which will take the war to the Japanese homeland.One pilot's autobiography of Doolittle Raid and aftermath. Doesn't really mention the hundreds of thousands of Chinese butchered by the Japanese for being suspected of hiding the American flyers.
- DirectorAndrew MartonStarsVan JohnsonWalter PidgeonLouis CalhernA famous writer visits an aircraft carrier during the Korean war to learn more about it and the way it's run. He also gets to find out more about the Navy and Marine aviators themselves, their internal and external conflicts and dangers of their job.AKA Panther Squadron - USN Pilots in Korea
- DirectorDouglas SirkStarsRock HudsonMartha HyerDan DuryeaA remorseful bomber pilot-turned-minister rejoins for the Korean War.Based on True Story of USAF Pilot in Korea. Good flying sequences. Don DeFore (Hazel's 1st Mr. Baxter) has a key role as a fighter pilot (also played fighter pilot in "A Guy Named Joe"). Look for Black actor and WW II Veteran Officer James Edwards as another fighter pilot.
- DirectorFrancis D. LyonStarsJohn PayneKaren SteelePaul KellyAn Air Force major feels a volatile mixture of relief and anger when he is excused from performing a dangerous test in a new aircraft.
- DirectorAnthony MannStarsJames StewartJune AllysonFrank LovejoyAn ex-pilot and current baseballer is recalled into the U.S. Air Force and assumes an increasingly important role in Cold War deterrence.Jimmy Stewart - WWII Combat flyer and USAF Reservist shows his pride in his service.
- DirectorGordon DouglasStarsNatalie WoodKarl MaldenMarsha HuntSgt. Chuck Brennan always disliked playboy and hotshot, Col. Jim Herlihy. Now Chuck has even more reason to, Jim is dating his daughter, Lois.Efrem Zimbalist Jr/Natalie Wood/Karl Malden
- DirectorMichael CurtizStarsJames CagneyDennis MorganBrenda MarshallInspired by Churchill's Dunkirk speech, brash, undisciplined bush pilot Brian MacLean and three friends enlist in the RCAF but are deemed too old to be fliers.Jimmy Cagney
- DirectorArthur LubinStarsRobert StackDiana BarrymoreJon HallAn American joins the British Royal Air Force just before Pearl Harbor is attacked, and falls in love with a beautiful English girl.
- DirectorRalph NelsonStarsGlenn FordNancy KwanRod TaylorAn airline executive refuses to believe that pilot error, by his friend, caused a fatal crash and persists in looking for another reason.Glenn Ford/Suzanne Pleshette
- DirectorBruce GoodisonStarsGreg BensonToni YoungbloodJason LeGrandeA docudrama about the efforts of the passengers aboard United Airlines Flight 93 to derail the 9/11 terrorists' plan for the hijacked airliner.
- DirectorPaul GreengrassStarsDavid Alan BascheOlivia ThirlbyLiza Colón-ZayasA real-time account of the events on United Flight 93, one of the planes hijacked on September 11th, 2001 that crashed near Shanksville, Pennsylvania when passengers foiled the terrorist plot.
- DirectorJim AbrahamsStarsCharlie SheenCary ElwesValeria GolinoA parody of Top Gun (1986) in which a talented but unstable fighter pilot must overcome the ghosts of his father and save a mission sabotaged by greedy weapons manufacturers.Parody Of Top Gun - silly as Airplane but that is exactly why it is loved.
- DirectorTony ScottStarsTom CruiseTim RobbinsKelly McGillisAs students at the United States Navy's elite fighter weapons school compete to be best in the class, one daring young pilot learns a few things from a civilian instructor that are not taught in the classroom.
- DirectorDavid Lowell RichStarsChuck ConnorsBuddy EbsenTammy GrimesAn invisible demon in the cargo hold of a jet airliner terrorizes the passengers.Supernatural Nonsense w/ Shatner & Chuck Connors
- DirectorJack ArnoldStarsLana TurnerJeff ChandlerRichard DenningHusband and wife pilots Mike Dandridge and Maggie Colby try to balance their time and priorities between work and family life.Jeff Chandler/Lana Turner - Good Scene with Reta Shaw as no-nonsense Nurse/Nanny facing off with Chandler.
- DirectorFred F. SearsStarsJohn HodiakJohn DerekAudrey TotterIn the early days of the Korean War, a commanding officer tries to rein in a headstrong rookie pilot determined to avenge his brother's death.Good film about observer pilots in Korea. Often overlooked recon and observer crews have been vital in since military fling began.
- DirectorNorman PanamaStarsTony CurtisVirna LisiGeorge C. ScottDuring the Korean War, Italian nurse Virna Lisi falls in love with two American fliers, Tony Curtis and George C. Scott. Lisi marries Curtis after he convinces her that Scott has been killed in a plane crash. She soon discovers Scott is alive, but remains happily married to Curtis until Scott re-enters their lives 14 years later.Good comedy with the beautiful Virna Lisi
- DirectorStuart HeislerStarsHumphrey BogartEleanor ParkerRaymond MasseyFormer World War II flying ace Matt Brennan takes a position as a test pilot for a commercial aircraft corporation and bumps into his old girlfriend, Jo Holloway, who now works as a receptionist for the company.Hey! It's Bogie!! What else need be said?
- DirectorAlfred E. GreenStarsRandolph ScottPreston FosterMargaret LindsayPilot disobeys unsafe orders and loses his job. He then starts a flying school which receives a boost when the government launches a program which it hopes will produce 20,000 pilots a year.
- DirectorGeorge More O'FerrallStarsJack HawkinsMichael DenisonAndrew OsbornThe story of an RAF fighter squadron at the height of the Battle of Britain.
- DirectorMichael AndersonStarsRichard ToddMichael RedgraveUrsula JeansDrama based on the attempt by the RAF to destroy six dams in Germany during World War II.
- DirectorPhilip LeacockStarsSteve McQueenRobert WagnerShirley Anne FieldIn 1943, while stationed in Britain, arrogant Captain Buzz Rickson is in command of a Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress bomber, but his recklessness is endangering everyone around him.Great aircraft scenes! The taxing of the planes before takeoff is the only time I recall seeing that view from a bomber's cockpit in a movie.
- DirectorHenry KosterStarsJames StewartMarlene DietrichGlynis JohnsAn aeronautical engineer predicts that a new model of plane will fail catastrophically and in a novel manner after a specific number flying hours.A bit flawed but plot actually is very eerily fore-shadowing of actual crashes of British de Havilland Comet Jetliners a few years later.
- DirectorBoris SagalStarsDavid McCallumSuzanne NeveCharles GrayIn World War II, an RAF squadron leader mourns the death of a comrade and receives a bombing mission against a secret German V-2 rocket testing facility in France.
- DirectorJohn GillingStarsRay MillandBernard LeeKenneth HaighThe Commanding Officer of an RAF Training School must deal with a difficult cadet, but the cadet reminds the C.O. of himself when young.
- DirectorGordon DouglasStarsAlan LaddJune AllysonJames WhitmoreA Korean War fighter pilot hero returns home to test fly the new Sabre jets despite his wife's uneasiness regarding his job.True story of Korean War triple jet ace (16 kills) Joseph C. McConnell.
- DirectorDavid LeanStarsRalph RichardsonAnn ToddNigel PatrickFictionalized story of British aerospace engineers solving the problem of supersonic flight.AKA Breaking Through the Sound Barrier and Breaking the Sound Barrier. British fictional movie about breaking the sound barrier. In reality, American Chuck Yeager broke the sound barrier in 1947.
- DirectorHarry WattStarsJohn CobbRichard PeirsePercy Charles PickardThe planning and implementation of an RAF night raid on Germany in World War II, concentrating on a low level mission by a Wellington bomber on an oil storage facility by the Rhine.British WWII Documentary
- DirectorWilliam KeighleyDocumentary about one bombing mission over Germany by the American Eighth Air Force, from the initial planning of the mission thru its final completion, with all of its intricacies from beginning to end.American WWII Documentary
- DirectorMichael AndersonStarsYul BrynnerRichard WidmarkGeorge ChakirisA flight crew tries to save the survivors of a shipwreck off the coast of Japan during a raging typhoon.A lot of flashbacks but a good overall presentation of the USAF's Air Rescue Service.
- DirectorIrwin AllenStarsRed ButtonsFabianBarbara EdenIn 1862, the British commission inventor Fergusson to claim uncharted land in West Africa for Britain by flying his giant hot air balloon there.Cute twist on "Around the world in 80 days"
- DirectorFred F. SearsStarsJohn HodiakJohn DerekAudrey TotterIn the early days of the Korean War, a commanding officer tries to rein in a headstrong rookie pilot determined to avenge his brother's death.Good film about observer pilots in Korea. Often overlooked recon and observer crews have been vital since military flying began.
- DirectorHoward HawksStarsCary GrantJean ArthurRita HayworthAt a remote South American trading port, the manager of an air-freight company is forced to risk his pilots' lives in order to win an important contract as a traveling American showgirl stops in town.Good film about era when pilots flew 'by the seat of their pants'.
- DirectorDavid Lowell RichStarsSuzanne PleshetteJames FarentinoLloyd NolanA young pilot, a Vietnam veteran, with a new wife and an ex-girlfriend, has more than enough to contend with, but his memories of the war present the greatest hazard.Soap Opera with aircraft BUT some great flying sequences and aircraft