Angels One Five

Angels One-Five is a story of the trials and tribulations of life on an RAF base during World War II. Some great scenes of Hurricanes on the ground, taking off, in the air and landing.

The Film is shot at RAF Neethley which I understand is actually RAF Kenley in real life. Some of the flying scenes look distinctly home-made however the story is powerful enough to forgive the shortcomings of the 1950s special effects department.

Lovely 1950s English accents and light hearted events go towards making this film quaint in style but the harsh reality of war is impressed upon the viewer making it a poignant but enjoyable experience.

I love this film and I return to it again and again and thoroughly enjoy it every time.

Highly recommended.

Any film that contains such immortal lines as " They've really caught us with both pairs of trousers at the cleaners this time!" definitely deserves a 10.

Typical fare for post-war British cinema-goers - stiff upper lips versus the might of the Nazi war machine.

Told over a few short weeks in 1940, the plot follows Pilot Officer 'Septic' Baird (John Gregson) as a fledgling Hurricane pilot posted to an operational squadron during the Battle of Britain. 'Septic' struggles stoically in the face of his boisterous comrades, an earnest would-be girlfriend and impossible numbers of enemy raiders. The Station Commander (Jack Hawkins) puts a human face on the RAF hierarchy, burdened by the knowledge that the fate of the nation really does depend on the skill of his young pilots. 'The few' eventually grasp victory but it doesn't come cheap.

Admittedly wooden by today's standards but, through films like this, a whole generation built up their Saturday afternoon understanding of the RAF's 'finest hour'.

I'm watching this right after the terrorist attacks on London. Immediately, the Brits snapped back to this period, the so-called Battle of Britain where a few outnumbered airmen held off the bad guys. They've since forgotten that the bad guys were the Germans (not the Nazis), but they'll never, ever forget the unifying experience of the battle.

Since Hitler discovered the phenomenon, nations have defined themselves through film.

This movie is one of the best examples. Sure, there's some military stuff here... and there's war on. But this centers on the nature of the people and there's not much aerial battle that we see. The point is to trot out all the personalities and characteristics that define what it means to be British.

We've got pluck, we've got steadfastness, we've got earnestness and innocence, some kindly but firm officers who tie the whole thing together and then there's the rowdy humor.

Thin stuff when you think of it, but enough to build a nation.

Ted's Evaluation: 2 of 3 -- Has some interesting elements

"Angels One-Five" would make a wonderful double-feature along with the 1969 classic "The Battle of Britain". While both films have to do with the same battle and the same time period, they both approach it from completely different ways. "Angels" is a personal film--showing one particular unit and especially one brand-new pilot to the group. On the other hand, "The Battle of Britain" tries to do the impossible--encapsulate the entirety of the battle in one film! Plus, "The Battle of Britain" is a stunning film because of its amazing aerial sequences--whereas those in "Angels" are not particularly good, though this really isn't the focus of the film--it's more on people.

Baird is a new pilot arriving in a replacement fighter plane. However, due to an accident (which really isn't his fault), he gets in hot water with his immediate supervisor. Then, after shooting down his first plane, he gets in hot water with the base commander! Can Baird manage to pull it all together and make himself useful or will he crash and burn (literally)? The film does a nice job of capturing the look and feel of the war from the point of view of Baird and he's a nice sympathetic character. While you don't learn much about how Britain prevailed, it is a nice portrait of one particular brave but inexperienced man--something rarely seen in war films. Very enjoyable and I actually have little to criticize--it was a top-notch production aside from the air sequences.

By the way, if you are an aviation nut like myself, you'll notice that the planes in both movies are completely different--mostly because of the supply of planes available to both productions at that particular time (one film borrowed planes from the Portuguese air force and the other from the Spanish--which were both still flying WWII vintage planes at the time the films were made). For example, in "The Battle of Britain", the only German bombers shown are HE-111s and British are mostly shown flying Spitfires (though many other types of planes were used in the battles). However, "Angels" shows the Brits flying Hurricanes (which is more realistic, as more of these were used during that time than the more modern Spitfires) and you see other German bombers (such as a Ju-88). So, you not only see the war from a different perspective, but entire different aircraft as well!