_Memphis Belle_ turned out to be a much more gripping and entertaining movie than I thought it would. I didn’t expect it, but I was on the edge of my seat worried about the crew, wondering if they could make it.

The story is pretty simple: the crew of the american B-17 bomber “Memphis Belle” have done 24 successful bombing runs over Germany. One more and they can go home, first to do such a feat. So the stakes are high, both personally for each member of the crew, but also for the army, who is already planning how to harvest the PR and publicity it would generate.

The cinematography is really good, especially if you consider that this movie is more than thirty years old. The aerial fight scenes are amazing, I really liked them. The flak from the german anti-air guns in particular made it so tense. Great job.

The cast was good too, though I will have to say that there were a bit too many characters to keep track of in such a short runtime. After a while they started to melt together, to me.

In the end, I can recommend _Memphis Belle_ to anyone who likes war movies. But even if those aren’t your cup of tea, give this one a shot: it might surprise you.

8/10

Hip hip, hooray...

World War II and as the battle for the skies rages, the youthful crew of B-17 Bomber Memphis Belle embark on their 25th and final mission...

David Puttnam co-produces with Catherine Wyler and Michael Caton-Jones directs this poignant and gripping WWII story. The crew of "Belle" are made up of a youth inflected cast of actors headed by the likes of Eric Stoltz, Sean Astin, Billy Zane and Matthew Modine, while John Lithgow and David Strathairn provide the mature acting weight on the ground hoping that the boys come back safely.

In truth it's all a bit too predictable, but never insultingly so, though research into the real exploits of the brave heroes involved reveals that Hollywood has, well, been Hollywood. Tech credits are a mixture of the brilliant and the poor, but when it involves the aerial sequences the film is stunning, and the makers do a sterling job of making "Belle's" final flight suspenseful and emotionally potent. 6.5/10