patcal

Being old school I much prefer the old style film format. Proper credits at the beginning, then the story itself and end credits accompanied by the music.

I'm, frankly, amazed that I had never heard of "Spitfire Paddy" before and I'm wondering if this story was deliberately buried during and after the war quite simply because an Irishman chose to fight for the British at that point in history.

The early scenes back in Ireland in 1932 set the tale up very nicely and among the many wonderful cinematic touches throughout was the reminder of one of these scenes as the film draws to its conclusion.

Along the way we were treated to a veritable feast of Cinematography including some truly memorable moments when time appeared to stand still. The haunting music score was especially effective in the quieter scenes and then superbly enhanced the aerial action.

I'm sure with a bigger budget the CGI could have been more spectacular but in this film it doesn't matter one jot. All we need to see is that "Paddy" was up there amidst all the mayhem leading his men and creating havoc for the enemy.

I'm giving this film 10/10 which is remarkable considering I have never heard of anyone connected with it other than one of the three composers, Lorne Balfe. Strangely, as of now, no music credit is shown here in the IMDB.

The filmmakers did exactly what they set out to do, to tell us about this remarkable hero who, had he been British, would have been as well known as Douglas Bader.

It's one of those films that come along very occasionally with no fanfare but very worthwhile.

Every Irish man and woman should be proud. I'll raise a glass or two to "Paddy" tonight and add an extra one for the filmmakers.

As often happens, in order to enjoy a film or TV series you have to suspend reality and it is an absolute prerequisite to enjoying "Red Eye" whether you're a connoisseur of Law, the world of espionage or just an aviation enthusiast who knows that Ryanair does not fly into Heathrow.

I watched the first episode more in hope but was immediately hooked to such an extent that I binge-watched the rest.

The pace throughout never lets up. There was always something happening relevant to the story unlike the recent "Day of the Jackal" ruined with its plethora of boring padding side stories (and intrusion of ridiculous and irrelevant songs). The proper music score in "Red Eye" sweeps it along very nicely, the editing is sharp as nails and not a single frame is wasted.

Jing Lusi is the standout performer and, on the ground, Lesley Sharp steals every scene she's in. You can't take your eyes off her.

Highly recommended.

The Italians are brilliant at creating gems like this. Beautiful stories, top-class performers and wonderful musical scores.

Over the years we have seen films that dealt with the evacuation of English children from London and other cities to the countryside due to the aerial bombings during WW2. However, I was certainly not aware of this particular piece of history that, after WW2, saw 70,000 children from the South of Italy sent up North for a different reason, to avoid poverty and the terrible conditions they were living in. This film, set in those sad times, provides us with an insight of what it must have been like for the families.

Inevitably, tissues will be required at times and the gentle, haunting score by legendary Italian composer Nicola Piovani (who won an Oscar for "La Vita è Bella") enhances the entire production.

Strangely, the music credit (at the time of writing) is not shown on IMDB, or at least not in its usual position on the list.

Having watched this production you will likely be inspired, like me, to do some further research into this period of Italian history.