Movie Review: Flight From Ashiya (1964)

Genre: Rescue Adventure  

Director: Michael Anderson  

Starring: Yul Brynner, Richard Widmark, George Chakiris, Shirley Knight  

Running Time: 100 minutes  

Synopsis: A cargo vessel breaks up in rough seas off the coast of Japan, and the US Air Force Rescue Service is dispatched to pluck survivors out of the ocean. The rescuers include Major Sergeant Mike Takashima (Yul Brynner), Lieutenant Colonel Glenn Stevenson (Richard Widmark), and 2nd Lieutenant John Gregg (George Chakiris). Flashbacks reveal stories that shaped the men: Gregg was traumatized by a rescue-gone-wrong in the German mountains; Stevenson found his great love (Shirley Knight) and learned to hate during World War Two in Manila; and in the North Africa campaign, Takashima romantically pursued a Tunisian girl (Danièle Gaubert).

What Works Well: The cast is rich in talent, and the plot's ambition is not in doubt: co-writer Elliott Arnold (adapting his novel) traverses snowy mountains, raging oceans, the North Africa desert, and wartime Manila to cover distinct dramas. The bookend ocean rescue is a straightforward story of heroism, sacrifice, and overcoming psychological barriers, while the flashbacks coalesce around the theme of loss. 

What Does Not Work As Well: With no one story to focus on, the four episodes stumble on hokey improbabilities, and none are sharp enough to stand on their own merits. Sappy romantic interludes dominate for long stretches, and while both Stevenson and Takashima fall madly in love based on momentary infatuations, at least Takashima's lusty pursuit ends in a non-recoverable tragic (and unintended) comedy. The writing is rudimentary, the emotions superficially one-dimensional, and the recruitment propaganda is of the in-your-face variety.

Conclusion: The rescuers need rescuing from dangerous contrivances.



All Ace Black Movie Blog reviews are here.

Movie Review: 633 Squadron (1964)

A World War Two aviation mission drama, 633 Squadron consists of entirely familiar elements but flies with earnest intentions.

In Britain of 1944, the British 633 Squadron flies De Havilland Mosquitos and carries out bombing missions across Europe against German target. Under the leadership of Wing Commander Roy Grant (Cliff Robertson), an American volunteer pilot, the squadron has established a stellar reputation for getting the job done. Grant and his other pilots are recruited to train for a secret and difficult bombing mission in Norway. They are to destroy a heavily fortified Nazi fuel factory by toppling a protruding mountain ridge onto the enemy facility with a sustained bombing run.

Norwegian resistance leader Lieutenant Erik Bergman (George Chakiris) provides the intelligence and works with Grant on planning the mission. Grant also meets and starts a relationship with Erik's sister Hilde (Maria Perschy). The intense mission training runs claim casualties, and preparations are further interrupted by a German attack on the British base. As the designated day of the attack approaches, Erik gets into trouble back in Norway and little goes according to plan.

A British Mirisch Films production directed by Walter Grauman and loosely inspired by actual events, 633 Squadron is as basic as war movies get. Despite the plastic characters, wooden acting, inane dialogue, predictable heroics, implausible mission, and contrived romance, it's extremely difficult to not like the film: this is standard fare war action, honest in purpose, modest in scope and competent in execution.

The film is enhanced by an above-average music score by Ron Goodwin, and the flying sequences, featuring a combination of real aircraft and model work, are for the most part accomplished. The in-cockpit scenes feature cringe-worthy backscreen projections, but otherwise Grauman frequently captures the majesty of the nimble Mosquito. As the first combat aviation film produced in colour and Panavision widescreen, 633 Squadron set the new standard for what is possible, and the visuals rarely disappoint.

The pacing is also good. On-the-ground resistance action in Norway, the German attack on the British airfield, the dangerous training flights in Scotland and a precision bombing strike on a Gestapo building provide regular doses of action prior to the final bombing raid on the heavily fortified factory. The stirring attack includes Grant and his fellow pilots running a gauntlet of anti-aircraft batteries at low altitude, and served as inspiration for no less than George Lucas and the legendary ending of the first Star Wars movie. 633 Squadron also deserves credit for accepting a higher than typical casualty rate among the allied forces.

Matching the reality of pilots during the war being drawn from throughout the Commonwealth, Grant's team is a diverse and multi-ethnic group, notably including a Sikh pilot. Cliff Robertson provides the volunteer American presence to increase the film's international appeal, but in general the characters are purely stock.

Lacking in finesse but not in spirit, 633 Squadron gets the job done.

All Ace Black Movie Blog reviews are here.

Movie Review: West Side Story (1961)

A groundbreaking musical, West Side Story is a spectacular story of love and violence, delivered with high energy performances, superb choreography and audacious staging.

Two gangs of teenagers vie for control of the streets on New York City's west side. Riff (Russ Tamblyn) leads the Jets, made up of American offspring of Polish immigrants. Bernardo (George Chakiris) leads the rival Sharks, who represent the recently arrived Puerto Rican community. Lieutenant Schrank (Simon Oakland) and Officer Krupke (William Bramley) struggle to keep a lid on the violence.

Riff decides to stage a once-and-for-all brawl to decide who rules the streets, and reaches out to Jets co-founder Tony (Richard Beymer) to help plan the clash. Although Tony is trying to leave gang life behind and now has a legitimate job at the drugstore owned by Doc (Ned Glass), he reluctantly agrees to support his friend.

At a gym dance on neutral territory attended by both gangs and their girlfriends, Tony meets and falls in love with Maria (Natalie Wood), Bernando's younger sister. Their relationship across gang lines is forbidden, but they push on regardless. Bernando's girlfriend Anita (Rita Moreno) is also Maria's best friend, and she is torn between supporting Maria's secret affair and staying loyal to her man. Maria pleads with Tony to put a stop to the violence, but as the big showdown approaches, there is plenty of ill intent on all sides.

Co-directed by Robert Wise and choreographer Jerome Robbins, West Side Story is the adaptation of the hit Broadway musical, which in turn was inspired by Shakespeare's Romeo And Juliet. The screen version was years ahead of its time for a cinematic musical, and set standards for staging visually dynamic group dance numbers, all the violence stylized into dancing, the story propelled by a succession of classic songs.

Working with cinematographer Daniel L. Fapp, Wise and Robbins continuously find innovative perspectives to capture the dance sequences. With sharp editing, the camera alternates between broad shots capturing the full troupe to fluid motion close-ups embedded within the dancers. The actors are captured from various perspectives, with Wise always finding reasons to look up, look down, or look beyond, and cleverly playing with lights, shadows and visual effects. The use of colour to distinguish the gangs is exemplary, the Jets decked out in lighter yellows and browns, their girls in bright pastels, while the Sharks and their women are all about dark purple, dark red and black.

The songs are generally short and pointed, and do enough to highlight the prevailing emotions without getting in the way. The highlights are many, and include the raucous America, encapsulating all that is good and bad about the immigrant dream; the trio of love ballads Maria, Tonight and Somewhere, and more fun interludes like Gee, Officer Krupke and I Feel Pretty. Wise keeps the action moving to various locations, and does an excellent job escaping stage trappings. The back lane fire escape becomes an iconic home for romance to blossom between Maria and Tony, the railings creating a cage of limitations not of their own making.

The film's themes are eternal and remain relevant, the "us" and "them" mentality mixing with the aimlessness of abandoned youth, and some of the lyrics starkly pointing to failures at home catapulting kids onto the street. No parents are ever seen in the film; they are an absentee presence, their flawed offspring littering the sidewalks and unequipped to navigate life without resorting to insults and assaults.

Natalie Wood does well as a Puerto Rican girl flowering into a woman and landing in the middle of gang warfare, Wood's sprightly innocence allowing her to overcome the ethnic mix-up in her casting. Rita Moreno is the other stand-out performer, bringing the most conflicted passion to the role of Anita. The men are more about the collective rather than the individual, Richard Beymer, Russ Tamblyn and George Chakiris lacking star quality as actors but therefore allowing the gangs to shine as central entities, as they should in a story about individuals only having courage when part of a faceless mob.

West Side Story is a stellar achievement, an unblinking look at a street-level romantic tragedy turned into one of Hollywood's all-time best musicals.

All Ace Black Movie Blog reviews are here.