Reviews

The film is touching to say the very least. It will make an impression on you as no other film ever could. Schwindler's list and all the other movies of this genre pale in significance. To see these kids collecting the paper clips and comprehending how many six million individuals really are helps the average person to understand that amount. The interviews with the survivors were touching, to say the least, and the only more memorable thing the producers could have done would have been to have the kids interview many more of the six million survivors and capture their full stories for posterity.

A 'must see' film for everyone that has an interest in the history. As the historian George Santyana stated, "Those that do not study history are doomed to repeat it".

The real "stars" of this movie are the actual aircraft the US Navy had in 1940, both old and new. Those aircraft are all in their original markings and complicated paint schemes, during the time the Navy was converting from colorful to subdued colors. Every color was part of a complicated plan to identify each aircrafts place in squadron formations allowing quick identifications of exactly where each aircraft "belongs". All the planes are here, Vought Vindicators, Helldivers, Buffalos, F4Fs, PBY's, and even the little used and known Northrup dive bomber competitor of the Vindicator. The US Navy went all out with massed formations in the air and on the ground, close ups, long shots, all of it the most impressive I've seen on the screen, and every foot of it in living glorious color. No attempt to censor or exclude anything, almost as if the US Navy was saying, "Don't underestimate us".

There is only one thing better than seeing this film on VCR or DVD, and that's seeing it on the large screen as I have thrice in my life. If you find the chance to see it on the large screen, don't miss it.

The frosting on the cake is the stirring and patriotic score by Max Steiner, parts of which show up in his other film classics like Fighter Squadron. This movie may have been made made over sixty years ago, but you'll find yourself ready to go running off to your local Navy recruiter, the effect it must have made on its audiences at the time.

When you view this film try and imagine the actions most of these airplanes were in against the Japanese less than two years later, at places like Pearl Harbor, Wake Island, Coral Sea and Midway Island.

Too bad Germany, Japan, Russia, and most of the other warring powers didn't leave a color documentary of their air forces of the time.

This was one of the last motion pictures made in Germany during World War II and gives one the feel for mid war period in that country.

While the Nazi Government is never mentioned, the film appeals to the German's work ethic in crafting the aeronautical tools for Victory, final victory as in "Endsieg". From the background one can see that the movie was filmed on site at Heinkle Aircraft's Rostock on the Baltic facility. Matter of fact the "owner" of the factory even looks like Ernst Heinkle, the real owner of Heinkle. There are nice line ups of the standard Heinkle 111 bombers of the period, and if you look closely you'll see The secret Heinkle 177 "Greif" in a background shot that the censors must have missed. "Production for the Front" should be the sub title of this movie as the factory scenes involving the young apprentices spending every moment for a few weeks working overtime producing cockpits for the He-111 to replace those lost in a "fire" (wartime bombing?") seems to be the message of the film. The theme music and pieces through out the movie are catchy if you see the movie more than once you may find yourself humming some of the tunes next day! The cast is very professional, my German is not that good, but most of the words can be easily understood and the plot followed. Actually quite a few plots thread through this one but that seems to be common in German wartime movies.

Eberhard Krüger at the young age of nine or so is easily recognised as the, now older, Hardy Kruger of US movies. The rest of the cast puts on a very impressive performance considering that this was made to induce a younger viewing population to consider working in aviation production at an early age.

If you like what you see the first viewing, try and see it a few more times to completely understand it.