633 Squadron (1964)

I saw the film 633 squadron when it was first released in '64. The film follows in the tradition of many great Air War Stories including DAWN PATROL. The score for the film is the finest musical adaptation or imitation of the revving aircraft engine. Cliff Robertson who was a good American actor played a credible leading role as wing commander. We did deem it odd that the British would make an American a Major in the Royal Air Force and appoint him wing commander. That could be the work of studios trying to sell the story here in the US.The perception of the colonial audience was that the mission portrayed was an attack on German Heavy Water experiments and that the attack took place earlier in the war. The scene of bombing the GESTAPO HQs came right out of an earlier film, 13 Rue Madeleine (1947)starring Jimmy Carney.Pre-Star Wars films like the live stage required a measure of "willing suspension of disbelief." I try to adjust myself to that before watching old films.

This movie should be way better than it is, as it is one of the few movies showing the fabulous deHavilland Mosquito. The plot is right out of a "Blackhawks" comic book, and the acting by mis-cast actors is extremely wooden, especially by "Mr. Oaktree" himself, Cliff Robertson. The good part is of course the Mosquitoes, those wonderful twin-Merlin-powered plywood wonders that could out-lift heavy bombers, out-fight fighters on both sides, and in an out-and-out dash, the fastest bloody thing in the sky until jets came along.The bad part is the people, a squadron made up of token characters right out of the aforementioned Blackhawk comic book. There is even a Norwegian Navy lieutenant played by George Chakiris in one of the most extreme cases of mis-casting ever - he's Greek, fer cryin' out loud!This film was shot in the 60's, where the production crew managed to scrape together four flyable Mossies and three more that could taxi under power (and were eventually destroyed for crash scenes). Sharp-eyed deHavilland experts will realize that all but one of the Mosquitoes were actually target-tug (TT) models, with their glazed noses merely painted over and phony machine gun tips glued on to make them look like fighter-bomber (FB) models. But gripes aside, this is probably the finest collection of footage available for this wonderful airplane and is worth at least renting the DVD, if not owning it.

The watery fjords surrounding the coast of Norway are so encrusted with towering mountains and majestic cliffs that the Germans in World War II found them an excellent place to secretly build launching pads for their new rockets. That then becomes the target area of this motion picture's story. Perhaps one of the most daring flying groups of the British Air Force was the infamous "633 Squadron." Cliff Robertson plays Wing Cmdr. Roy Grant an excellent combat pilot and flight leader of the elite squadron is chosen to seek out and destroy the well protected laboratory. Located in a nearly inaccessible seaside location, the Germans believe the allies cannot harm it because it's protected by coastal guns and a gigantic boulder. That's where George Chakiris playing Lt. Erik Bergman of the Norwegian underground comes in and explains the rock is also their Achilles heel. He has volunteered to show Grant where and how to destroy the lab. Harry Andrews is Air Vice Marshal Davis who explains to Grant the lab must be destroyed at all costs and minces few words to describe the nearly suicidal mission Grant must succeed in. With fine acting by Donald Houston, Michael Goodliffe and Angus Lennie (the 'mole' from Great Escape) this dramatic story is a remarkable tribute to all the courageous fliers of the squadron. Good entertainment. ****

This, along with The Dam Busters, is a classic film about the exploits of the RAF in the Second World War although unlike The Dam Busters this follows a fictional squadron. Not surprisingly for a film made in 1964 the special effects seem dated but the sight and sound or real Mosquitoes flying is something a modern film couldn't have.The squadron is given the task of destroying a factory making rocket fuel in Norway, to do this they will have to fly up a well defended fjord and bomb a fault on the mountain above the factory rather than attacking the building directly. The squadron is made up of a mixture of nationalities and lead by an American, Wing Cmdr. Roy Grant, who had enlisted in the RAF Eagle Squadron before the US joined the war. The are assisted by a Norwegian Navy Lieutenant, Erik Bergman, who brings them details of the factory site then later returns with the intention of enlisting the help of local resistance fighters to attack the anti-aircraft guns. There is also a subplot where Wing Cmdr. Grant gets romantically involved with Erik Bergman's sister.Like most British war films of the time this isn't about gung-ho heroics but about the sacrifice involved in warfare. The film was fairly well acted and the flying scenes were great, it is tragic that there are no longer any airworthy Mosquitoes here. Being a fairly old film it is suitable for younger viewers as there is no bad language and there isn't gore, even people shot with machine-guns manage to avoid bleeding. No review of this film would be complete without mentioning Ron Goodwin's excellent score which combined with the drone of the Mosquito's two Merlin engines is enough to give one goosebumps.