Above and Beyond

A tiny sliver of a story from WWII? Perhaps...

the big stories get told over and over and over - with great attention, yet offering nothing new - but it's the little ones that can really make a difference.

This story might not seem important to some, but it is important because, although the big stories make headlines and hollywood titles, it's the genuine "little" stories like this that preserve the true human condition throughout history.

This documentary reveals wonderful details of a pilot trying to survive behind enemy lines in the second world war that have never been presented before. And it's a great joy that this story is told by the daughter of the adventurous pilot.

Just an all around great documentary about the pilot and crew of the B-17 Flying Fortress named "Damn Yankee". Interesting to note that 1Lt. Bruce Sundlun (retired as a colonel in 1980) was a two time Governor of Rhode Island in 1990 and 1992. His daughter Kara (Hewes) Sundlun narrates this documentary. Kara is an anchor with WFSB-TV in Connecticut.

It was an interesting story, but as I listened to his narration of the events, uncomfortable facts were apparent. His plane got shot down, 5 of the crew died in the crash and 4 were captured by the Germans. He ran away and hid. Then he spent 6 months underground, trying to escape. OK so far, right? He described his technique for getting help; find a catholic priest and ask to find someone to help him. Remember that anybody in occupied Europe was executed by the Germans if caught helping downed allied fliers. He told about stealing 159 bicycles to get himself around. He thought it was funny, apparently from his smirk and chuckle. What about those people who depended on their bikes for transportation in war-time occupied countries? Well, not a concern to him. He got involved with the French underground and ran a group of fighters who he led in aggressive attacks on Germans. They finally asked him to stop killing German soldiers and leave, because the Nazis executed French civilians in reprisals as a result. He thought that was rather amusing, too. BTW, his daughter who gushed about "My Dad" all through the film, was born when Sundlun got one of his employees pregnant. He was in one of his 5 marriages at the time, and only accepted her as his daughter when she sued him at age 17 to make him pay for her college. A perfect man? No, but who is. A hero? I don't see it.

It was very well put together and informative. It had great personal interviews detailing events. I was completely unaware of this story and hope more people hear about it.

"Above and Beyond" is a small film...with a rather limited budget and scope. But this does NOT mean it's not good. In fact, it's a wonderful way to preserve the memory of a brave man and a war long past.

The film is about Bruce Sundlun, a B-17 pilot whose plane was shot down over Belgium. Four of his crew were captured and five died....and somehow he managed to escape and spent many months in Europe trying to make his way back to the Allied lines. In the meantime, he even served with the French underground for some time! All in all a very unusual and interesting story.

Sundlund died just three years before this film was released. Fortunately, they had recorded quite a bit of him discussing the war and this escape from Belgium. Together with his daughter, who acted as the host, and several locals, they explained his story and help keep history alive and from being forgotten.

Overall, considering the budget this is a pretty amazing film. Well worth seeing and very important to our history.