Los intrépidos hombres en sus máquinas voladoras, o Cómo volé de Londres a París en 25 horas y 11 minutos

I first watched this movie in a remote part of colonial Mozambique, brought around by a touring Catholic priest, and projected on a bed sheet, with all the local residents sitting on grass.

Perhaps because most locals had never watched a film before, or seen aircraft, what I remember is people laughing throughout, with some kids (including me) trying to imitate what went on the screen.

I remember finding Gert Frobe and Cassel very funny. Since then, I have watched this movie some four times at different points in my life and I've always found it both touchingly absurd and uproariously funny in parts. One can find many loopholes in the story, but that hardly matters in a well-intentioned film clearly determined to get a good laugh out of you.

This was a fairly long but interesting story of an early 20th century airplane race taking place between London and Paris. The actual race only takes place for the last 45 minutes, and that's fun to watch. The terrain also is nice to view.

Before that, you get profiles of the competitors of the race. You really get the typical stereotypes of movies: the French men woo all the women; the Germans are make to look too militaristic and stupid; the English are portrayed as very stiff upper-lipped and the Italians are all too emotional, etc.

Stuart Whitman and James Fox both battle for Sarah Miles' affections and Terry Thomas has some funny lines as a villain.

I loved the airplanes in this film - really cool "flying machines," as they are labeled here. They came in all sizes and shapes. In the very beginning of the movie, they show actual footage of early flight failures and they are familiar but still fascinating. Interspiced in the actual footage are closeups of Red Skelton playing the part of some of those unsuccessful fliers. Since he had no lines, Skelton reminded me of some of the great silent film comedians.

One of the numerous comedy epics of the 1960s (It's a Mad, Mad, Mad World, and Monte Carlo or Bust being others), this movie is very funny and memorably so. The tale of several flyers from different nationalities (British, America, French, Italian, German, etc.) piloting their planes across the Channel from London to Paris - and the vintage model planes are fabulous - takes the form of a number of different interwoven stories leading up to the race in the last part of the movie.

The cast includes Terry-Thomas as Sir Percy, the cheating upper-class Englishman; James Fox as the irritating fop Richard; Stuart Whitman as Orvil the American nice guy; Jean-Pierre Cassell as the randy Frenchman; and Gert Frobe as the blustering German officer. Cameos a-plenty, from Benny Hill, Tony Hancock, William Rushton, Eric Sykes, Fred Emney, and so on. Irina Demick (in multiple roles), and Sarah Miles play what love interest the film has.

Highly recommended if you fancy a laugh. And a fantastic and memorable theme song as well.

I think everyone has a few old movies stashed away in their brains that for some reason or another are a part of their lives. Our personal soundtrack if you will. This film is one of mine. I know I saw it at a drive-in when it came out but can't recall which one. My older brother still recalls this one fondly also. It was gut busting funny at the time but hasn't aged that well due to the general public's far more sophisticated mindset these days. But it's still funny. Anyone who is a fan of flying or the history of traditional European nationalistic rivalry will still howl at this clever and at times very sharp satire. We see some of the attitudes that would help fuel the violent world wars that would erupt soon after 1910. The vintage aircraft, some authentic, some not, are sure to excite aircraft fans. The footage of the genuine planes actually flying across the English countryside is genuinely MAGNIFICENT. Many running gags through the length of the movie. My favorite is the obvious one...the redhead. I caught this on our PBS station just last night and as always I was hooked again and had to watch till two in the morning. There's something about most English movies from the 60's that is just magical. Even the bad ones like "Casino Royale" are still fascinating to watch. Great international casts, clever scripts, funny situations, sight gags...whole packages. Fun Movies, plain and simple. "Those Magnificent Men..." isn't a great film or even a great comedy. But it's still a genuine Fun Movie and well worth at least a rental fee. Now that I've seen it again for the zillonth time my brother and I will be talking about it and laughing out butts off the next time I see him. For us it's one of those kind of movies.

I'm one of the biggest fans of old newsreels and I don't think there are too many of us who haven't seen some of that ancient footage with all those odd contraptions showing man's attempt to fly in the early 20th century. I guess it was only a matter of time before someone got the bright idea to do a comedy from those attempts.

Some of them weren't all that funny, people did in fact get killed, a lot of them in trying to master the air. But by 1910 there were all kinds of airplanes and even some early helicopters and a lot are shown in Those Magnificent Men.

The plot centers about an international race from London to Paris sponsored by one of the English press lords played in true John Bull style by Robert Morley. He's got a spirited suffragette daughter in Sarah Miles and a most proper member of the King's Coldstream Guards in James Fox courting her.

But along comes another flier, an American cowboy, Stuart Whitman who becomes Fox's air and romantic rival. But the film's got more than that. It's got Italian hopeful Alberto Sordi who can impregnate his wife with a dirty look. It's got Frenchman Jean Pierre-Cassel who keeps running into Irina Demick every place he goes. It's even got another English contestant in Terry-Thomas who's busy trying to sabotage everyone else.

However my favorite is the German entry, Gert Frobe. Poor Frobe has to pinch hit for the original German flier who partied too hardy. But as he tries to prove as long as you follow the instruction book, the German Army can accomplish anything. Seeing him try to fly his airplane while reading the instruction book is my favorite memory of Those Magnificent Men.

That and that incredibly catchy title song. I defy anyone to watch this film and not come away humming that tune for weeks. It will embed itself in your subconscious forever.

Those Magnificent Men is good entertainment and a gentle tribute to those early air pioneers.