Tag Archives: World War 2

Friday night movie: One of Our Aircraft is Missing (1942)

Here’s tonight’s movie:

IMDB rating: [7.1/10]

Description:

During the Allied Bombing offensive of World War II the public was often informed that “A raid took place last night over …, One (or often more) of Our Aircraft Is Missing”. Behind these sombre words hid tales of death, destruction and derring-do. This is the story of one such bomber crew who were shot down and the brave Dutch patriots who helped them home.

Watch for this quote:

[as RAF bombers approach]
Jo de Vries: You see. That’s what you’re doing for us. Can you hear them running for shelter? Can you understand what that means to all the occupied countries? To enslaved people, having it drummed into their ears that the Germans are masters of the Earth. Seeing those masters running for shelter. Seeing them crouching under tables. And hearing that steady hum night after night. That noise which is oil for the burning fire in our hearts.

The bomber in the movie that they start with is called a  Vickers Wellington. It’s not very good, but the four-engine Avro Lancaster they get at the end of the movie is as good or better than the B-17 bomber used by the Americans during the war. Most people think that the Avro Lancaster was the best bomber of World War 2 on either side. My Canadian readers will be thrilled to know that Avro Canada constructed many Avro Lancasters to help with the war effort. You can still see an intact Lancaster in Alberta,  Canada.

And if you want to go see a good movie this weekend, go see “Act of Valor” in the theaters! (Reviews: Wall Street Journal, Washington Times)

Happy Friday!

Related posts

Friday night spies: Decision Before Dawn (1951)

Here you go:

IMDB rating: [7.4/10]

Description:

WWII is entering its last phase: Germany is in ruins, but does not yield. The US army lacks crucial knowledge about the German units operating on the opposite side of the Rhine, and decides to send two German prisoners to gather information. The scheme is risky: the Gestapo retains a terribly efficient network to identify and capture spies and deserters. Moreover, it is not clear that “Tiger”, who does not mind any dirty work as long as the price is right, and war-weary “Happy”, who might be easily betrayed by his feelings, are dependable agents. After Tiger and another American agent are successfully infiltrated, Happy is parachuted in Bavaria. His duty: find out the whereabouts of a powerful German armored unit moving towards the western front.

Happy Friday!

If you need more spies, here are some more:

Saturday night spies: “The Counterfeit Traitor” with William Holden

This is what I watched earlier today, and it was awesome.

Part 1 of 2:

Part 2 of 2:

This movie is based on a non-fiction book – it really happened!

Rating on IMDB is 7.6/10. So, quite high.

They don’t make movies like this any more.

Here’s another one you might like as well, called “O.S.S.”:

If you get through the movies and want to see more spy shows, here are four episodes of Danger Man, my favorite spy show.