Francis Gary Powers: The True Story of the U-2 Spy Incident

This was an interesting little movie that talked about the U-2 incident that took place in May 1960. Lee Majors was certainly not the Six Million Dollar Man here. If his acting did not convince us that he was Francis Gary Powers, his haircut in prison (which really looked like vintage Soviet) did. Noah Beery Jr., who played Powers' dad, was also quite effective.

Maybe the movie isn't exactly a prestigious production, but it is certainly a watchable and interesting one. The producers deserve credit for producing something that is based on a historical event that was an important one in the Cold War era, instead of something that is trashy. It is definitely worth watching.

This film shows in a couple of hours one of the most impacting and important events of the cold war. Based on the book written by Gary Powers, it is accurate but as stated above, could have been much better. Little attention is paid to the flight itself, the beautiful U-2, the main star of the picture, is not shown as much as it should be. I think it could have included more about the U-2 design at Lockheed, the work of that genius called Clarence L. "Kelly" Johnson, chief designer of the U2 and how the CIA decided to carry out those spy flights, how they picked the pilots etc. etc. If it was made today, I'm sure it would have included very important situations and happenings that the film misses. But at least it is the only one that shows this historical event so important to the history of not only the United States and the former Soviet Union but the world over. New generations of the whole planet must know about this incident.

This motion picture was the first dramatization ever done of the 1960 U-2 incident, and in spite of its age holds up well. Based on U-2 pilot Gary Power's autobiography "Operation Overflight", it premiered 45 years ago with '70s TV superstar Lee Majors in the title role. At the time, Lee Majors was one of the most popular stars on television with the series "Six Million Dollar Man". Apparently, he wanted to stretch his talents to try a new kind of role that had a lot more depth than his usual action series parts. The producers of the film probably also saw that having Lee Majors in the title role could potentially attract a huge audience.

In his performance as Gary Powers, Lee Majors tries hard, often succeeds, but there are still moments when he comes across as somewhat awkward. What really makes this film watchable are the fine performances by the supporting cast, including veteran TV actors Noah Beery, David Opatoshu, and Nehemiah Persoff. It is Persoff's character which really stands out. As Power's Soviet Interrogator he pursues his role with a calm, cool menace which is truly frightening.

The technical side of the movie helps out to give it a real sense of authenticity. Even though the special effects seem dated, they were state of the art for the time, and do succeed in showing the dangers of flying these hazardous spy missions. One thing the producers of the film got right was using the correct model of U-2 that Gary Powers flew at time. ( Something that "Bridge of Spies" did not.).

Finally, it should be known that Gary Powers himself acted as technical advisor for the film. His young son, Francis Gary Powers junior, himself had small part in the movie. He later reprised his Father by acting as technical advisor for the later "Bridge of Spies".

Soon afterward Gary Powers became the aerial traffic reporter for KNBC in Los Angeles, with the byline "The Spy in the Sky". Tragically, a year later, on 1 August, 1977, the former U-2 pilot was killed when his helicopter unexpectedly crashed as a result of a faulty fuel gauge.

A sad ending for history's most famous aerial spy.

Speaking as a Cold War veteran myself, I consider this film in so many ways to be the final testament of Francis Gary Powers.

Low budget but good true story. Shown on the same night as Gulag and shows some true stuff from the Soviet block during the Cold War. Both films worth it.