"Flyboys" is a decidedly old-fashioned war film that reaches for epic sweep but is often bogged down in cliched drama and two-dimensional characters. The "new kind of heroes" at the center of this World War I saga are the daring American volunteers who fought for France in fragile biplanes a mere decade after the birth of powered flight. Director Tony Bill and his colleagues bring a meticulous attention to detail to a heartfelt tribute that stubbornly fails to find an emotional pulse. Older audiences and history buffs will spark to the film, and its impressive dogfight scenes might be worth the price of admission for some, but an extended boxoffice flight seems less certain.
Romantic derring-do is the essence of the story of the Lafayette Escadrille, the France-based squadron of American pilots who, for various reasons, put their lives on the line to fight the Germans before the U.S. entered World War I. "Flyboys" opens in 1916 as a new group of young volunteers reports to Capt. Thenault (Jean Reno, whose understated performance provides the most moving moments) for two months of training at a chateau in the French countryside.
James Franco stars as Blaine Rawlings, an orphaned Texas boy whose family ranch has been foreclosed and who is inspired by newsreels to volunteer in the European war. He joins an assortment of types, all based on real individuals but never quite springing to full-blooded life. There's the poor rich boy trying to prove himself to his cold father (Tyler Labine), the conflicted scion of a Nebraska military family (Philip Winchester), the son of a former slave who is making a name for himself as a boxer in France's more racially tolerant society (Abdul Salis) and a wiseguy who has trouble hitting targets and arouses suspicions (David Ellison, a leading aerobatic pilot).
Their squadron leader is the slighter older -- though not yet 30 -- Cassidy (Martin Henderson), an American ace who has a pet lion and 20 kills to his name. A loner who wears his experience like a shell, he offers the film's most direct commentary on the futility of war. It's personal with him, the goal being to avenge his friends' deaths by picking off German aces. Before putting them through their paces in the Nieuport 17, France's newest fighter biplane, he tells the fresh-faced boys that their life expectancy is six weeks.
Using actual WWI planes, re-creations, models and CGI effects, director Bill -- himself a pilot -- and cinematographer Henry Braham create a handful of well-executed aerial battles against the superior German triplanes and, in one instance, a zeppelin. "Flyboys" makes vividly clear how exhilarating this world above the brutal trenches was, and how dangerous. To modern eyes, the most innovative technology of the time looks shockingly primitive. The men who used it were all but unprotected and flew without parachutes; their contingency plan in case of an impending crash consisted of a self-inflicted pistol shot.
Franco ("Spider-Man", "James Dean") is a charismatic anchor for the story, and his language-barrier scenes with French newcomer Jennifer Decker, as local girl Lucienne, have a charm and energy that are otherwise lacking in the film's nonbattle sequences. Lucienne is raising her brother's children, their parents killed by strafing. The poignancy of her romance with Rawlings is underscored in the film's epilogue, which has more emotional impact than much of what precedes it.
To its credit, the script by Phil Sears, Blake Evans and David Ward avoids anachronisms and is faithful to a bygone sensibility. But too often it makes characters state their feelings in on-the-nose dialogue, much as Trevor Rabin's insistent score goes for the obvious musical statement. Shot in England, the good-looking film boasts convincing, unfussy production and costume design.
Romantic derring-do is the essence of the story of the Lafayette Escadrille, the France-based squadron of American pilots who, for various reasons, put their lives on the line to fight the Germans before the U.S. entered World War I. "Flyboys" opens in 1916 as a new group of young volunteers reports to Capt. Thenault (Jean Reno, whose understated performance provides the most moving moments) for two months of training at a chateau in the French countryside.
James Franco stars as Blaine Rawlings, an orphaned Texas boy whose family ranch has been foreclosed and who is inspired by newsreels to volunteer in the European war. He joins an assortment of types, all based on real individuals but never quite springing to full-blooded life. There's the poor rich boy trying to prove himself to his cold father (Tyler Labine), the conflicted scion of a Nebraska military family (Philip Winchester), the son of a former slave who is making a name for himself as a boxer in France's more racially tolerant society (Abdul Salis) and a wiseguy who has trouble hitting targets and arouses suspicions (David Ellison, a leading aerobatic pilot).
Their squadron leader is the slighter older -- though not yet 30 -- Cassidy (Martin Henderson), an American ace who has a pet lion and 20 kills to his name. A loner who wears his experience like a shell, he offers the film's most direct commentary on the futility of war. It's personal with him, the goal being to avenge his friends' deaths by picking off German aces. Before putting them through their paces in the Nieuport 17, France's newest fighter biplane, he tells the fresh-faced boys that their life expectancy is six weeks.
Using actual WWI planes, re-creations, models and CGI effects, director Bill -- himself a pilot -- and cinematographer Henry Braham create a handful of well-executed aerial battles against the superior German triplanes and, in one instance, a zeppelin. "Flyboys" makes vividly clear how exhilarating this world above the brutal trenches was, and how dangerous. To modern eyes, the most innovative technology of the time looks shockingly primitive. The men who used it were all but unprotected and flew without parachutes; their contingency plan in case of an impending crash consisted of a self-inflicted pistol shot.
Franco ("Spider-Man", "James Dean") is a charismatic anchor for the story, and his language-barrier scenes with French newcomer Jennifer Decker, as local girl Lucienne, have a charm and energy that are otherwise lacking in the film's nonbattle sequences. Lucienne is raising her brother's children, their parents killed by strafing. The poignancy of her romance with Rawlings is underscored in the film's epilogue, which has more emotional impact than much of what precedes it.
To its credit, the script by Phil Sears, Blake Evans and David Ward avoids anachronisms and is faithful to a bygone sensibility. But too often it makes characters state their feelings in on-the-nose dialogue, much as Trevor Rabin's insistent score goes for the obvious musical statement. Shot in England, the good-looking film boasts convincing, unfussy production and costume design.
- 10/9/2006
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Flyboys is a decidedly old-fashioned war film that reaches for epic sweep but is often bogged down in cliched drama and two-dimensional characters. The "new kind of heroes" at the center of this World War I saga are the daring American volunteers who fought for France in fragile biplanes a mere decade after the birth of powered flight. Director Tony Bill and his colleagues bring a meticulous attention to detail to a heartfelt tribute that stubbornly fails to find an emotional pulse. Older audiences and history buffs will spark to the film, and its impressive dogfight scenes might be worth the price of admission for some, but an extended boxoffice flight seems less certain.
Romantic derring-do is the essence of the story of the Lafayette Escadrille, the France-based squadron of American pilots who, for various reasons, put their lives on the line to fight the Germans before the U.S. entered World War I. Flyboys opens in 1916 as a new group of young volunteers reports to Capt. Thenault (Jean Reno, whose understated performance provides the most moving moments) for two months of training at a chateau in the French countryside.
James Franco stars as Blaine Rawlings, an orphaned Texas boy whose family ranch has been foreclosed and who is inspired by newsreels to volunteer in the European war. He joins an assortment of types, all based on real individuals but never quite springing to full-blooded life. There's the poor rich boy trying to prove himself to his cold father (Tyler Labine), the conflicted scion of a Nebraska military family (Philip Winchester), the son of a former slave who is making a name for himself as a boxer in France's more racially tolerant society (Abdul Salis) and a wiseguy who has trouble hitting targets and arouses suspicions (David Ellison, a leading aerobatic pilot).
Their squadron leader is the slighter older -- though not yet 30 -- Cassidy (Martin Henderson), an American ace who has a pet lion and 20 kills to his name. A loner who wears his experience like a shell, he offers the film's most direct commentary on the futility of war. It's personal with him, the goal being to avenge his friends' deaths by picking off German aces. Before putting them through their paces in the Nieuport 17, France's newest fighter biplane, he tells the fresh-faced boys that their life expectancy is six weeks.
Using actual WWI planes, re-creations, models and CGI effects, director Bill -- himself a pilot -- and cinematographer Henry Braham create a handful of well-executed aerial battles against the superior German triplanes and, in one instance, a zeppelin. Flyboys makes vividly clear how exhilarating this world above the brutal trenches was, and how dangerous. To modern eyes, the most innovative technology of the time looks shockingly primitive. The men who used it were all but unprotected and flew without parachutes; their contingency plan in case of an impending crash consisted of a self-inflicted pistol shot.
Franco (Spider-Man, James Dean) is a charismatic anchor for the story, and his language-barrier scenes with French newcomer Jennifer Decker, as local girl Lucienne, have a charm and energy that are otherwise lacking in the film's nonbattle sequences. Lucienne is raising her brother's children, their parents killed by strafing. The poignancy of her romance with Rawlings is underscored in the film's epilogue, which has more emotional impact than much of what precedes it.
To its credit, the script by Phil Sears, Blake Evans and David Ward avoids anachronisms and is faithful to a bygone sensibility. But too often it makes characters state their feelings in on-the-nose dialogue, much as Trevor Rabin's insistent score goes for the obvious musical statement. Shot in England, the good-looking film boasts convincing, unfussy production and costume design.
FLYBOYS
MGM
Electric Entertainment in association with Skydance Prods. and Ingenious Film Partners
Credits:
Director: Tony Bill
Screenwriters: Phil Sears, Blake Evans, David Ward
Producers: Dean Devlin, Marc Frydman
Executive producer: Phillip Goldfarb
Director of photography: Henry Braham
Production designer: Charles Wood
Music: Trevor Rabin
Co-producers: Marc Roskin, Kearie Peak
Costume designer: Nic Ede
Editors: Chris Blunden, Ron Rosen
Aerial unit coordinator: Ray Hanna
Visual effects supervisor: Mark Franco
Cast:
Blaine Rawlings: James Franco
Reed Cassidy: Martin Henderson
Eddie Beagle: David Ellison
Lucienne: Jennifer Decker
Capt. Thenault: Jean Reno
William Jensen: Philip Winchester
Briggs Lowry: Tyler Labine
Eugene Skinner: Abdul Salis
Lt. Giroux: Augustin Legrand
Running time -- 139 minutes
MPAA rating: PG-13...
Romantic derring-do is the essence of the story of the Lafayette Escadrille, the France-based squadron of American pilots who, for various reasons, put their lives on the line to fight the Germans before the U.S. entered World War I. Flyboys opens in 1916 as a new group of young volunteers reports to Capt. Thenault (Jean Reno, whose understated performance provides the most moving moments) for two months of training at a chateau in the French countryside.
James Franco stars as Blaine Rawlings, an orphaned Texas boy whose family ranch has been foreclosed and who is inspired by newsreels to volunteer in the European war. He joins an assortment of types, all based on real individuals but never quite springing to full-blooded life. There's the poor rich boy trying to prove himself to his cold father (Tyler Labine), the conflicted scion of a Nebraska military family (Philip Winchester), the son of a former slave who is making a name for himself as a boxer in France's more racially tolerant society (Abdul Salis) and a wiseguy who has trouble hitting targets and arouses suspicions (David Ellison, a leading aerobatic pilot).
Their squadron leader is the slighter older -- though not yet 30 -- Cassidy (Martin Henderson), an American ace who has a pet lion and 20 kills to his name. A loner who wears his experience like a shell, he offers the film's most direct commentary on the futility of war. It's personal with him, the goal being to avenge his friends' deaths by picking off German aces. Before putting them through their paces in the Nieuport 17, France's newest fighter biplane, he tells the fresh-faced boys that their life expectancy is six weeks.
Using actual WWI planes, re-creations, models and CGI effects, director Bill -- himself a pilot -- and cinematographer Henry Braham create a handful of well-executed aerial battles against the superior German triplanes and, in one instance, a zeppelin. Flyboys makes vividly clear how exhilarating this world above the brutal trenches was, and how dangerous. To modern eyes, the most innovative technology of the time looks shockingly primitive. The men who used it were all but unprotected and flew without parachutes; their contingency plan in case of an impending crash consisted of a self-inflicted pistol shot.
Franco (Spider-Man, James Dean) is a charismatic anchor for the story, and his language-barrier scenes with French newcomer Jennifer Decker, as local girl Lucienne, have a charm and energy that are otherwise lacking in the film's nonbattle sequences. Lucienne is raising her brother's children, their parents killed by strafing. The poignancy of her romance with Rawlings is underscored in the film's epilogue, which has more emotional impact than much of what precedes it.
To its credit, the script by Phil Sears, Blake Evans and David Ward avoids anachronisms and is faithful to a bygone sensibility. But too often it makes characters state their feelings in on-the-nose dialogue, much as Trevor Rabin's insistent score goes for the obvious musical statement. Shot in England, the good-looking film boasts convincing, unfussy production and costume design.
FLYBOYS
MGM
Electric Entertainment in association with Skydance Prods. and Ingenious Film Partners
Credits:
Director: Tony Bill
Screenwriters: Phil Sears, Blake Evans, David Ward
Producers: Dean Devlin, Marc Frydman
Executive producer: Phillip Goldfarb
Director of photography: Henry Braham
Production designer: Charles Wood
Music: Trevor Rabin
Co-producers: Marc Roskin, Kearie Peak
Costume designer: Nic Ede
Editors: Chris Blunden, Ron Rosen
Aerial unit coordinator: Ray Hanna
Visual effects supervisor: Mark Franco
Cast:
Blaine Rawlings: James Franco
Reed Cassidy: Martin Henderson
Eddie Beagle: David Ellison
Lucienne: Jennifer Decker
Capt. Thenault: Jean Reno
William Jensen: Philip Winchester
Briggs Lowry: Tyler Labine
Eugene Skinner: Abdul Salis
Lt. Giroux: Augustin Legrand
Running time -- 139 minutes
MPAA rating: PG-13...
- 9/22/2006
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
James Franco and Jean Reno will head the cast of Electric Entertainment's Flyboys, which will be directed by Tony Bill. Electric principal Dean Devlin will produce with Marc Frydman. The screenplay was written by David Ward, based on an original screenplay by Phil Sears and Blake Evans. Principal photography is scheduled to begin April 18 in the United Kingdom. Ingenious Entertainment's Duncan Reid and James Clayton will executive produce along with David Brown and Phil Goldfarb. Electric's Marc Roskin and Kearie Peak will co-produce, with Electric's Rachel Olschan serving as associate producer.
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