Simply A Masterpiece

Admirable film.

I like movies that are aware of what they are selling... without [any] greater aspirations than to make people laugh and that's it.

I cannot think of one single thing that I would change about this film. The acting is incomparable, the directing deft, and the writing poignantly brilliant.

If you took the time to see this film, you should take the time to investigate what led up to suspicious and distrusting world Governments spending so much time, effort and manpower to frighten populations to the point of spending untold billions for a war which was concocted out of fear rather than reality. There are those who say, The military created SAC to prevent a global war and which justified the bottomless Money Pit which continues to this day. The same can be said by those who believe, we created a defensive system against fire breathing dragons and since there has never been an attack by dragons, proves the Dragon defensive system worked. That said, one can watch as Rock Hudson as Col. Jim Caldwell as he takes command of a substandard Air Force base and with a proficiency ax brings the wing into line with others bases in the United States. Helping him is handsome Rod Taylor as Col. Hollis Farr his second in command. Barry Sullivan plays Col. Bill Fowler with Kevin McCarthy as Gen. 'Happy Jack' Kirby, Henry Silva as Col. Joe Garcia and Robert Lansing as Sgt. Banning. A superb cast and a fine film. ***

I lived in the United States when this movie came out and for quite a few years after wards. I personally loved it (the movie I mean though I still love the U.S. also), but I doubt if the movie will ever be a best seller or even much liked by the general population. The main problem is of course the leading man, Rock Hudson. He was a homosexual during the time when you could not even mention that word in a movie. There were rumors of his homosexuality during that time; years later he admitted to being one. When that occurred the residual values of his movies fell and have never come back up. Which is a shame for some of his movies; they were excellent works. I consider this a good movie, but other factors came up some years later that ruined the reputation of the B-52 SAC wings (other than Hudson's homosexuality). First, they were used in some rather controversial bombing raids during the most hated war in American history-Vietnam. Second, it was discovered in the late 1980s that the Commander of SAC (General Powers) at that time this movie was made had advocated the use of American force against the Soviets that would have undoubtedly caused WW III. Not good. There were other problems with the "mindset" shown in this movie. Fortunately, the SAC Wings did keep WW III from occurring by deterrence; without pushing so hard so as to set war off. All in all, a great movie, but somewhat murky to the average person. One last note: I won't tell you how the movie ends but I will tell you how history developed. At the end of the movie a B-52 bomber is shown returning from a mission; flying by some missiles that were on alert (probably for an ORI). Anyway, this was something of a prediction of the future as nuclear deterrence gradually shifted from the bombers to the missiles. Today there are no bombers on nuclear alert (at least in the U.S. Air Force), and I doubt if any will be again in the future. Even the missiles have been greatly reduced in number. So, in real life, the Cold War had a happy ending. Being that is the case- who really cares about how the movie ended?? :)

Although Rock Hudson did finally excel in comedy genre as well as his one laudable effort in "Giant," during the scene where he is one-on-one performing with Robert Lansing (playing the maintenance sergeant) Hudson comes off a poor second. The quiet power demonstrated by Lansing simply staggers the imagination and causes it to catch its breath. It was not just a case of "underplaying," but rather bringing forth such great depth to the role's character and demeanor. One of the most underrated of our excellent American actors, it is a shame we couldn't have seen Robert Lansing in many more, larger roles on the big screen in Hollywood's truly major films. What did the casting directors miss here? Much, in my opinion.

This film has a hackneyed plot about the strains put on a marriage by nuclear weapons, but some of the scenes are little short of spectacular. The sequence where Hudson and Taylor are timing a mass takeoff of bombers and discussing the job performance of the base commander is truly awe-inspiring. The wind from the engine blast whips at their clothes and the noise is ear-shattering. Most of the film seems like it was written by complete hacks but there is a story buried under all the maudlin touches.