Aquile nell'infinito

Without sounding like some "tech-head" and quoting all sorts of technical jargon, I've just got to say, that one of the main reasons for enjoying this Cold War pic is the sheer visual impact. The flight sequence where Dutch is sent out in a Peacemaker is incredible. The color, clouds, and air-to-air photography is stunning. My one thought through the movie was, "What a shame the Steady-cam wasn't around."

One of the classic film cable channels has been showing what appears to be a well restored print, and I wonder if a DVD version will be avaliable, at some date.

And, if you are a plane fan, seeing a B-36 in motion is impressive, too. It's something to see a flight deck that has no computer, digital display, ot high tech flight control. Dials! Propellers! Incredible!

And yes, being a car fan, too, I got a big charge out of this picture.

This is a great rainy/snowy/stay inside Sunday afternoon movie. Grab a drink, pop some popcorn, turn off the current world, and set "The Way-Back Machine" to the early 50's when the BAD GUY was a Bear, and the world was a safer place.

Next year, 2005, will be the 50th anniversary of the movie, "Strategic Air Command." Nearly all reviews of this movie are quite similar...a somewhat boring movie with unsurpassed aerial photography of the magnificent B-36. (One really needs to see the in-flight sequences...they are extraordinary!)

These valid comments really ignore the "larger picture." The B-36 (Peacemaker) stopped flying before the average person living today was born...it was a long time ago. This movie captures a time in America when the military...SAC with its aircraft...ADC (Air Defense Command) with its hundreds of radar sites nationwide...civilians in The Ground Observer Corps...were all involved in "watching the sky" in order to help protect and defend from possible attack by our cold war enemies.

It is difficult, understandably, for many today to comprehend the times and attitudes depicted in "Strategic Air Command." I was there...it did happen. This movie captures some of the dedication that was required. With that in mind, perhaps we can forgive a script and story line that is weak. More importantly, let's celebrate that, a half-century ago, many served and did their duty as the times required. That is the real message of this movie.

As commented before, what makes this picture different from most "military PR" pictures is that it is quite frank on the sacrifices made by the people who serve and their families which still goes on today. It makes me wonder how we get people to serve when the pay and benefit are really a mere pittance, although I can understand why Dutch Holland took all those flights when whiny June Allyson is your wife.

As for the aircraft - what a visual treat to see these grand aircraft of a bygone era in vivid color. Almost makes up for the lackluster story.

On a side note, a commenter stated that the film erred in placing Thule AFB in Greenland, but the film is correct, Thule is in Greenland, not Iceland.

68/100. Not one of Jimmy Stewart's best films, but not fault of his. He is terrific. June Allyson, I don't know what exactly it is I don't like about her. I feel her performances are so rehearsed and phony. She is way too sappy and understanding in this film and I feel she hurts the films overall effect. Some excellent aerial photography, good score and the entire production is top notch. It waves the flag a little excessively and the mix of personal drama and action sequences is at times a little awkward. The supporting cast is a bit bland, Harry Morgan and Rosemary deCamp stand out as the best. Good special effects. The color in the film was exceptionally crisp.

James Stewart flew more than 26 combat missions in WWII as the commander of a B-24. The infamous Ploesti oil field raids were the most dangerous of the war, and he flew a B-24 50ft off the deck on several runs.

This was a great man, and a fine, fine actor. His commitment to the U.S. Air Force SAC command resonated in this film. His courage in WWII and the courage and sacrifice of that entire WWII generation has been forgotten in what is left of America---the remaining oldsters of that generation, and their baby-boomer offspring who did not sandblast their brains with pot and booze back in the 60s and 70s being the only group that would enjoy this film and remember what it was all like back then. The rest of the "citizens' of this country register nothing when WWI or II is talked about. They do not even remember the Cold War and the hammer of nukes we all lived under, and still are threatened by.

The massive 10-engined (6 props, 4 jets) B-36 was the iconic cornerstone of 50s bomber tech. A magnificent leviathan that could fly for days at very high altitudes, and carry massive amounts of dumb bombs, or, in one aircraft, enough H-bombs to end the world. Google the B-36 and gaze upon an almost surrealistic machine that broke plates, glasses and windows when it flew over with a basso profundo propeller sound unlike anything ever heard before or since.

I remember my father pointing them out, very high in the sky, white contrails feathering back for miles behind them....and that roar.....distant and discordant...you could hear a B-36 fly over even at 40,000 feet.

"Strategic Air Command" was an extended showpiece for that airplane, and a beautiful piece of music, "Symphony of Flight" carries the film into the in-flight scenes that make the movie so transcending of an admittedly formulaic human drama. It is an amazing historical piece that actually shows the transition from props to full jets that the Air Force went through in the 50s. At the end, there is pristine footage of the B-47, the first U.S. jet bomber, and Stewart has an adventure with that.

The cockpit shots of the B-36 and B-47 probably drove Russian spies to a frenzy, but for an aviation buff they were the stuff of dreams.

The crash landing of Stewart's B-36 was done in miniature format, and actually was a weak point of the film. The model was too small to make the crash look realistic---Howard and Theodore Lydecker could have knocked that scene out of the park.....the bad weather landing of the B-47 at the end of the film was also done in miniature, and looked better, reminding me of how much fun special effects must have been in the pre-CGI days.

For an intimate look at a huge Cold warrior, and some beautiful music, plus a look at June Allyson's legs that could make the whole movie for you, I highly recommend "Strategic Air Command"