Memphis Belle [Blu-ray] [1990]

This is a neat little but effective war movie. It’s a classic and worth watching. Neverthless if you ask me, it hasn’t aged that well in a visual sense. It is a war movie that doesn’t just focus on action, drama and gruesome scenes, it rather tells you the story about the very young crew, barely out of their teens, of a B-17 bomber on their record final mission. It shows their fears, moral choices and comradery. We watched it with our young children as the oldest has a WWII project at school and next to the standard material about the big battles like D-Day, Dunkirk ect, I thought it would be nice to show her another aspect of the war. The youngest at 7 is just very interested in everything military and WWII-related, so he was very keen to keep watching. Frankly, they were glued to the screen.The movie gives you a good sense of bomber formation flights while under attack from Messerschmitts and the claustrophobic experience of the gunners in their turrets. There is some drama but nothing too shocking and the story line has a traditional, somewhat predictable ending. The movie is supported by a strong cast of actors like Matthew Modine, Eric Stollz and my 90’s slick favourite Billy Zane!I bought this on in HD format at Amazon Prime so that the family can watch it again at a later stage - I still have the 1990’s DVD but I get increasingly tired of storing DVD’s and wanted to own in it HD. Yet the HD quality that I got was so and so. The movie is simply a bit grainy though the colours were mostly nice. The thing is that this an early 1990’s movie and even in a digital format it is not jumping from your screen. That in itself is not a big issue and somewhat to the authenticity. Perhaps an other small issues is that the story line is very straightforward; there is the preparation for a hazardous daylight raid on a supply factory in a heavily defended German city, there are tense moments before they get to the target and then the question is whether they will make it back. Also, the movie is all from the sweet American heroic perspective. And even though the crew is careful not to hit schools and hospitals, the reality is that these kids were still bringing a lot of death and destruction.However where the movie lags are the effects. The bomb dropping scenes are obviously coloured-in material from real life raids. On VHS and DVD this may have looked okay but its distraction in on my high end OLED tv. And then the effects are a bit clumsy and unrealistic. The bomber formations are good and so are the dogfights. But sometimes direct hit scenes are mixed with obviously exploding model planes that just look off. Even in the early 1990’s this could have been done beter. Lastly I should say that no subtitles were included with this movie. With pretty straight forward dialogue that was no issue, but still, as a non-native I prefer to watch with the subs.I should say that these were my specific issues, while it was a thoroughly enjoyable and exciting viewing for the family. My wife even liked it and thought it is a good movie. Both my children asked several questions about it during the following days - such little debates are priceless. So the movie certainly left an impression.

Price is too high for a old film.

Can watch over and over again

Well worth watching as a tribute to US bomber crew in WW2. As a tribute to the airmen who fought and died this is a good film and a fine tribute.However there are a lot of glaring errors such as B17s without rear guns, runways (no more than a year old in 1943) showing 50 years of patches & wear and tear, poor characterisation and weak plots.As a movie in its own right its not one of the great war films. The Modine character is wasted (Modine is a huge talent see full metal jacket etc etc) and the other characters are overblown. It is highly unlikely for instance, that crewmen would come to blows during incoming flack near the target....or under any circumstances while airborne for that matter.There is something sloppy, cheap, rose tinted and lacking in authenticity about this film. Its a true story but that doesn't mean its ok to get so much detail wrong. It does matter that much of the film on the B17 is without engine noise or vibration or turbulence even over cumulus. It does matter that a conversation with a tail gunner in another plane which appears to have no tail guns is sloppy filmmaking.The love interest was not believable. Its like they tried to show a bit of each cheesy storybook image or airmen and cram it in to the film. They put Harry Connick Jr on the stage at one point (presumably because he is Harry Connick Jr)Either make the film longer or stick to the bare bones of the plot without the fluff. I can see why they did it (to enhance the tribute aspect) but taking care over the detail and enhancing authenticity is arguably a better form of tribute.

Hav seen before but a long time ago, great to rewatch

Watched this for the first time in 30 years…a classic.

An excellent film even though some of the photographic techniques are possibly a bit dated. Great acting and you are absorbed into the fate of the characters.

Great to have in the movie collection