leethomas-11621
Loved that this film stayed mostly on the ground. Realistic settings and characters. Tackles qualities needed for leadership. Pity we don't get close in any personal sense to the men. Wished we had more background to the flyers and the non-officer crew. Their beautiful singing is heard in voice-over. I find Gregory Peck sometimes too stolid/placid in films but here it's an asset. An unusual war film that is saved from being forgettable by its last scenes.
JLRVancouver
Made only four years after cessation of hostilities, "Twelve O'Clock High" follows tough Brigadier General Frank Savage (Gregory Peck) as he tries to whip the dispirited 918th Bomb Group back into fighting shape. The films features some outstanding aerial footage, shot both from Allied and Luftwaffe planes during combat missions, and opens with the dramatic crash-landing of a B17 bomber staged for the purpose of the film! The acting is all topnotch, especially Peck and Dean Jagger (as introspective Major Harvey Stovall) and avoids most of the usual war film clichés. The film was one of the first post-WW2 films to consider the impact of war on men's nerves and shows good men, not just 'weak' men, cracking under the strain. The 'mission before the men' mentality is dealt with honestly, as is the risk/benefit math that necessitates sending men on missions knowing that some will not return (e.g. one dangerous bomb run that might succeed is better than five lower risk runs that are likely to fail). A great film and an interesting exploration of priorities and values in a nation-to-nation total war that differs markedly from most of the conflicts that have occurred since.
sol-
Placed in charge of bomber unit, a hard-nosed general gradually softens as he realises the devastating mental impact on the soldiers under his command in this World War II drama. Gregory Peck gives a commanding performance as the general in question whose initial stance that "there isn't time" to "ease up" eventually vanishes as he learns more and more about the crippling effects of the near fatal missions on his troops. This is also one of the earliest movies to look at the psychological effects of war on individuals with a bitter irony in how the soldiers who survive their missions are only rewarded with more and more dangerous missions. For a film that wants us to sympathise with lowest ranking soldiers though, we get to know relatively few of them in any depth. Indeed, much of the film is spent on Peck and his subordinate officers debating how to treat their troops. This is not really a big detractor since Dean Jagger, Hugh Marlowe and others provide solid performances in such roles, but it does feel a little odd that we only get to see one bombing run in detail - and this insight comes relatively late into the film too. If one perceives the film as a character study of Peck's general first and foremost though, it is hard to disagree with the film's approach. Certainly, his character trajectory is easy to predict, but Peck is convincing every step of the way on the road to an eventual near complete change of heart. The film features some excellent audio and visual effects too even if the reliance on stock footage grows a tad irksome.
edwagreen
Excuse me, but how did Dean Jagger ever win the best supporting actor Oscar for this 1949 film? He was far too old for the part even though the latter did call for an older man. Fellow nominee John Ireland was far better in "All the King's Men." The film examines men in air combat and shows how strategic day-light bombing was the way to go in the war against Germany.We briefly hear British traitor Lord Haw-Haw in one of his speeches urging the allies to surrender.The movie proves that all men are basically vulnerable and have a breaking point. As Frank Savage, Peck lives up to his name in the film by being tough towards the men he leads in battle by air during World War 11. He has taken over the spot from Gary Merrill who has shown that he can't obey an order regarding a flyer.We know it's hard sending men into battle and we know that the latter may only stand so much.Peck is very good in the film as a commander who eventually suffers shock as a result of what he has to do.
AD
