It is, in fact, the masterpiece of war production.
Wings
Youth, hitting the clouds! Laughing at danger! Fighting, loving, dodging death! That's "WINGS"
1927 · 2h 24m · PG-13
Action, Drama, Romance, War
Directed by
William A. Wellman
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Wings
Overview
Two young men, one rich, one middle class, both in love with the same woman, become US Air Corps fighter pilots and, eventually, heroic flying aces during World War I. Devoted best friends, their mutual love of the girl eventually threatens their bond. Meanwhile, a hometown girl who's the lovestruck lifelong next door neighbor of one of them pines away.
Director and cast
- William A. Wellman Director
- Clara Bow as Mary Preston
- Charles 'Buddy' Rogers as Jack Powell
- Richard Arlen as David Armstrong
- Jobyna Ralston as Sylvia Lewis
- El Brendel as Herman Schwimpf
- Richard Tucker as Air Commander
- Gary Cooper as Cadet White
- Gunboat Smith as The Sergeant
- Henry B. Walthall as Mr. Armstrong
- Roscoe Karns as Lieutenant Cameron
Critics on Rotten Tomatoes
Top critics, in their words
There not being so much of Clara Bow in the picture, or a straining for her to turn on that 'it' personality, she gives an all around corking performance.
It won the first Academy Award for best picture back in 1927, establishing a tradition of silliness that hasn't been broken to this day, but there is some thrilling flying footage and impressively expensive spectacle.
Long touted as a classic by cinema historians, and justifying almost every adjectival extravagance.
This feature gives one an unforgettable idea of the existence of these daring fighters.
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