Flyboys

Flyboys

Director: Tony Bill

Year: 2006

Starring: James Franco, Jean Reno and Martin Henderson

     Flyboys depicts something that many forget was a part of the First World War: the bi-planes, and their legendary dogfights. There was a lot going on in the European skies, and not many films have been made on the subject. The first winner of the Academy Award for Best Picture, Wings, was a silent film about combat aces. The Blue Max was a British film about German fighter pilots, and Hell's Angels is another film about the subject. Needless to say, very few films cover this part of the First World War.
     Flyboys is based on the true story of the LaFayette Escadrille air squadron, a French flying unit that had many Americans join their ranks. Each character is based heavily on a real-life figure, and their stories come to life on the big screen. Leading the ranks is James Franco, an American Rancher who becomes intrigued by the idea of flying in combat, and becomes a very talented pilot at that. Martin Henderson plays a veteran pilot with a troubled past, and clashes with Franco's character at various points in the film. Jean Reno is the real star of the film as the commanding officer of LaFayette, Captain Thenault (the only character to retain the real name of the person he was based on).
     The areal scenes in the film is really impressive, and while it was all done digitally, it still has a sense of weight, meaning you get a feeling that these are real, and you forget they were all created digitally. The dogfight scenes is where the research shows as well, as it's very clear the filmmakers did their homework. There wasn't much video footage of bi-planes for obvious reasons, so the filmmakers had to rely on written descriptions of what these might have looked like. The grand scale of these scenes gives you a sense of awe and wonder, and if the entire film had just been bi-planes shooting each other down, it wouldn't have been a bad thing.
     The only major downside to this film is the pointless romance subplot. Franco's character falls in love with a local French girl, and he is constantly meeting up with her at different times. These scenes are boring, and they don't go anywhere. It really feels like filler, and these scenes could have been removed from the final cut. They really don't have any bearing on the film's plot. There is absolutely no character development, with the female character blatantly telling Franco's character that it isn't going anywhere, and that he should stop what he's doing. It really makes you miss the flying scenes, or any scene with Jean Reno.
     Flyboys, although it had a terrible run at the box-office, and was given a negative reception by many critics, it still a good film. There are times when the film feels cheesy, and a lot of the actors in the film really shouldn't quit their day-job, but overall, the effects on the airplanes themselves, and Franco and Reno's acting, really make up for it. If anything, it reminds you that the First World War wasn't just fought in the trenches.