Aces High (1976)

In World War I, the high casualty rate amongst the rookie pilots of the Royal Flying Corps puts an enormous strain on the survivors.

Director:

Jack Gold

Writers:

Howard Barker (screenplay), R.C. Sherriff (play)

Stars:

Malcolm McDowell, Christopher Plummer, Simon Ward

Nominated for 1 BAFTA Film Award. Another 1 win & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Malcolm McDowell	...	Gresham
Christopher Plummer	...	Sinclair
Simon Ward	...	Crawford
Peter Firth	...	Croft
David Wood	...	Thompson
John Gielgud	...	Headmaster
Trevor Howard	...	Silkin
Richard Johnson	...	Colonel Lyle
Ray Milland	...	Brigadier Whale
Christopher Blake	...	Roberts
Gilles Béhat	...	Beckenauer (as Gilles Behat)
Elliott Cooper	...	Wade
David Daker	...	Bennett
Barry Jackson	...	Joyce
Jacques Maury	...	Ponnelle

Storyline

A naive young officer straight from school arrives on the Western front to fight the air war against the Germans. However, the life expectancy of green pilots is not very good.

---

Plot Keywords:

british soldier | airplane collision | aerial photography | burning airplane | fighter plane | 

---

Taglines:

High above the trenches 14 days is a long life...This is the 15th day!

---

Genres:

Action | Drama | War

---

Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

UK France

Language:

English French German

Release Date:

December 1977 (USA)

Also Known As:

Aces High

Filming Locations:

EMI Elstree Studios, Borehamwood, Hertfordshire, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

GBP1,250,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

S. Benjamin Fisz Productions, Les Productions Jacques Roitfeld, Cine Artists Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

114 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

When Croft (Peter Firth) and Captain Sinclair (Christopher Plummer) inspect an S.E. 5 aircraft, the latter says, "We had pups before." "We are damn lucky to get these." The "pups" is a reference to the Sopwith Pup fighter aircraft. It entered service in autumn 1916 and had been mostly withdrawn from service by the time the movie takes place, in October 1917.

---

Goofs

Major Gressham is depicted as the leader of 76 Squadron, Royal Flying Corps. That particular squadron was based in England throughout the war and never saw action in France or elsewhere.

---

Quotes

Mess Corporal Bennett: [as the pilots set off early in the morning on a dangerous mission] How many for breakfast? Any of them?

---

Crazy Credits

Opening credits prologue: England October 1916

---

Alternate Versions

Some DVD releases feature a shorter print which reduces the French restaurant scene and misses out shots of the officers looking at a slideshow of nude photographs. These appear to have been made by the distributor, as the film has never been cut by the BBFC.

---

Connections

Featured in The World According to Smith & Jones: War (1988)

---

Soundtracks

Roses of Picardy
(uncredited)
Written by Haydn Wood and Frederick Edward Weatherly

User Reviews

I saw this with my grandfather

I remember seeing this movie with my grandfather when it came out. My Grandfather was an observer in the RFC during WWI and so had real life views on what the movie was portraying.

I found the movie fascinating and well made, albeit rather sad, but my opinion paled against that of my grandfather. He never spoke too much about that time, but he did comment on how well the movie was made and how it fairly accurately summed up the feelings of the day, the high mortality, the bravery and the terrible mental burden it put on the combatants.

He was shot down 90 years ago over St Julien in France but survived to have a full and fruitful life. Yes i know some purists are mentioning the inaccuracy of some of the planes but to him it did not matter as the story of young human life was more relevant. I would advise anyone to see this movie to remind themselves of the great risks and sacrifices these young men took, he was 22 when he was shot down but many were much younger.

a great reminder of the risks taken by many young men who should have been enjoying life at that time. We should never forget them nor allow the lessons learned to fade away