In 1943, the crew of a B-17 based in UK prepares for its 25th and last bombing mission over Germany before returning home to the USA.In 1943, the crew of a B-17 based in UK prepares for its 25th and last bombing mission over Germany before returning home to the USA.In 1943, the crew of a B-17 based in UK prepares for its 25th and last bombing mission over Germany before returning home to the USA.
IMDb RATING
6.9/10
28K
YOUR RATING
- Nominated for 1 BAFTA Award
- 1 win & 4 nominations total
Videos1
Reed Diamond
- Sgt. Virgil Hoogestegeras Sgt. Virgil Hoogesteger
- (as Reed Edward Diamond)
Mac McDonald
- Lesas Les
- (as Mac Macdonald)
Jodie Brooke Wilson
- Singeras Singer
- (as Jodie Wilson)
- Director
- Writer
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
- All cast & crew
Storyline
It's May 1943 at a US Army Air Corps base in England. The four officers and six enlisted men of the Memphis Belle - a B-17 bomber so nicknamed for the girlfriend of its stern and stoic captain, Dennis Dearborn - will soon start their twenty-fifth mission, having completed their previous twenty-four successfully with nary an incident, while fewer and fewer other planes are coming back from their missions at all. If they complete their next mission successfully, they will be the first Army Air Corps B-17 Crew to complete their tour of duty. Visiting communications officer Lt. Col. Bruce Derringer wants to publicize and highly tout their accomplishment, even before it happens, as a long term good news campaign at a time when there is little good news to report. Derringer's plan is against the wishes of the base commander, Col. Craig Harriman, who would prefer to treat the ten as any of his other hard working men. The previous success of the Memphis Belle is despite the disparate natures of the ten men, whose personalities and backgrounds could not be more different. Each of the ten has a differing view of Derringer's publicity campaign as well as to the probable success or failure of what will be their last mission regardless, a dangerous one into enemy territory over the skies of Bremen, Germany. —Huggo
- Taglines
- Brave young men who rode on the wings of victory.
- Genres
- Certificate
- PG-13
- Parents guide
Did you know
- TriviaThe navigator of the real Memphis Belle was Charles Leighton. From Flint Michigan, he retired as a teacher and counselor. He saved the Belle and other B-17s after identifying false German radio beacons designed to lure unwary B-17s into harm's way.
- GoofsIn Memphis Belle the bomber force is ordered to circle back to the Initial Point when the Primary Target is obscured by smoke or cloud cover. In reality, this would NOT have happened. First, it is VERY hard to have a formation of 300-plus Forts make a 180 degree turn. Second, such a maneuver would alert all flak batteries as to the actual target. Third, such a maneuver would keep the force under fighter attack longer than need be. In actuality, bomber crews were briefed on a primary, a secondary, a tertiary and targets of opportunity. If the primary target was unable to be hit, the primary became the IP to set up on the secondary. If the secondary were unable to be hit, it became the IP for the tertiary, and if that were unable to be hit, the force commander (NOT the pilot of the lead aircraft) would issue an order to go after targets of opportunity. Failing that, the mission would be aborted and the crews would dump their ordnance in either the North Sea or the English Channel. The mission would count toward tour completion, as the crews would have been in combat, and were over enemy territory.
- Quotes
Richard Rascal Moore: [a German fighter has just passed extremely close under the belly of the plane, right past Rascal] That guy had blue eyes!
- Alternate versionsThe UK cinema version was rated 12, and was uncut. The video release was rated PG, and removed the use of "all fucked up".
- ConnectionsEdited into Dark Blue World (2001)
- SoundtracksThe Chestnut Tree
Written by Tommie Connor, Jimmy Kennedy and Hamilton Kennedy
Top review
A Hollywoodized version of a true story
"Memphis Belle" tells of the last combat mission of a legendary WWII B-17 bomber and her crew. The film is Hollywoodized for entertainment value and doesn't square with history on many counts including a fully fictionalized crew. Nonetheless, the film is offers a good cast, good drama, plenty of suspense and action, and imparts some sense of the daring and danger involved in the Belle's mission #25 and daylight Army Air Corps raids over Western Europe. Worth a look for those unfamiliar with the sacrifices of the air combat crews of WWII.
helpful•2210
- =G=
- Jun 22, 2002
Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Official sites
- Language
- Also known as
- Красуня з Мемфіса
- Filming locations
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $23,000,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $27,441,977
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $5,026,846
- Oct 14, 1990
- Gross worldwide
- $27,441,977
- Runtime1 hour 47 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.85 : 1
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