War in the air recreated for the cinema audience with authenticity and drama, Phil Jarman reviews the star-studded Second World War epic, Battle of Britain.
REAL TO REEL Great British War Films
Director Guy Hamilton was determined to reproduce one of the most decisive air battles of the Second World War. To achieve this he brought together a stellar cast of international actors and 100 aircraft to re-enact the conflict.
It was unfortunate that the highbudget Battle of Britain hit the cinema screens just as anti-war sentiments were being stirred up by America’s controversial involvement in Vietnam. This is possibly the main reason why the 1969 film, which cost $12m to make (the equivalent of $83m today), failed to achieve the popularity of similarly themed movies released during the previous two decades. However, the accuracy and invention employed by Hamilton and his joint producers – Harry Saltzman and Benjamin Fisz – led to a critically acclaimed cinematic record of the two sides engaged in the decisive wartime episode that unfolded during the summer and autumn of 1940.
The characters in the film were brought to life through the neat scriptwriting of James Kennaway and Wilfred Greatorex as they based…
