The Thousand Plane Raid

World War Two had many facets which claim to have been the pivotal point of the conflict. Regardless, it took the whole industry of several countries to group themselves into the Allied cause, which eventually destroyed the Nazi dream of world dominance. This is one of the key elements which was essential towards that goal. The film is called " The Thousand Plane Raid " which was directed by Boris Sagal and penned by novelist Ralph Barker. It purports to tell the story of Col. Greg Brandon (Christopher George) who proposed to group together a thousand allied B-17 Bombers to destroy a specific target producing German fighter planes. He finds that he is troubled by both the British high command as well as his own men. In addition, those closest to him realize that he is obsessed with his idea and is losing touch with everyone. A good movie, though a bit melodramatic. Nevertheless, a solid action oriented story. A fine cast which includes J.D. Cannon, Gary Marshal, Michael Evans, Gavin MacLeod and Bo Hopkins as Capt. Douglass. Recommended to War buffs. ****

A low-cost production for a typical war film of the era where triumphant and propagandistic tones seem more important than a well-executed movie. The characters are not fully developed, and while their performances are correct, they lack significant interpretive moments. It is a passable film if considered as a TV movie, but that is not the case. When compared to the series "12 O'Clock High," its level doesn't even reach that of its worst episodes, not to mention comparing it to the movie of the same title.

The worst part is that it's a work of fiction that appropriates successes from real events, which, however, haven't occurred in these terms, and that's why I refer to it as propaganda, like the very feat that gives the film its title, which is actually based on a mission carried out by the British aviation in the famous raid on Cologne in 1942.

I would say the best part of this movie is Gary Marshall as a British fighter pilot attached to an American bomber group for mysterious reasons... Christopher George is a professional scowler, and he is over the top as an hardass commander who cares so much he convinces everyone he doesn't care at all.

The low budget is almost tolerable except the over use of stock footage leads to major continuity errors, like when a b-17 crashes and they cut to a burning b-29 which looks nothing like the b-17. That was a bridge too far.

But I watched the whole movie which means it wasn't that bad... when I researched the topic turns out the British had already tried thousand bomber night missions prior to this so it wasn't a big deal and this is revisionist history. Oh well.

This is very much like "The War Lover" with Steve McQueen 10 years earlier in black-and-white, it is basically the same story, but that film was humanly so much more interesting. This is in colour, and although Christopher George is very much like Steve McQueen, almost like a twin character, he is grimmer, harder and more superficial - the McQueen character has an abyss of depth in its psychopathic possibilities, while Christopher George is only doing his job. Both died too young, by the way, Steve McQueen at 50 and Christopher George at 54.

What saves the film are the other characters, first of all Gary Marshal, who adds a very needful sense of humour and detachment to the grim show, while colonel Brandon (George) has no humour at all and never smiles. The case of the grounded pilot Palmer (J.D.Cannon) also adds some interest to the epic, while on the whole, like as if it was made for television, this is clearly less realistic than the McQueen feature, which offers so much more human insight into the lives of the bomber pilots in this dreadful war. Here it more amounts to aerobatics and showing off. McQueen makes that showing off pathological, while here it is superficial.

Nevertheless, it's an interesting film, better than its reputation, awfully exciting and with splendid scenery of war pilot flights in the air and in action. The only disturbing thing was Laraine Stephens' hair style, a cold blonde with too much make-up for that war and a coiffure belonging entirely to the 60s.

A US Air Col. Called Greg Brandon : Christopher George convinces Allies that a daylight bombing can change the course of the WWII . As about thousand planes have to destroy an industry where Nazis are making aircrafts .Hitler Knew the Plan...But the Allies Bet a Thousand Planes That He Didn't Know the Place!.This was the day the Allies turned the blitz on Hitler The biggest air-borne armada of the war - a thousand bombers on a secret mission to destroy the Nazi dream of a Thousand Year Reich!

Run-of-the-mill Warlike movie abot a dangerous mission with thrills, emotion , romance and a lot of stock footage . Concerning a true plot , around thousand allied Bombers assigned to destroy a specific target producing German fighter planes . Stars Christopher George who gives a nice but serious acting as the Colonel who receives a bombing mission against an industrial facility in France. Being well accompanied by a good cast of familiar faces , most of them from TV films such as the beautiful Laraine Stephens, J. D. Cannon, Gary Marshal , Gavin McLeod , Ben Murphy , Bo Hopkins , James Gammon , Charles Dierkop, among others . The Thousand Plane Raid 1969 is reminiscent of other warlike movies as Dam Busters , Operation Crossbow, by Michael Anderson, 633 Squadron by Walter Grauman and Mosquito Squadron by Boris Sagal himself .The motion picture was regular but professionally directed by Boris Sagal , a television series expert such as : Rich Man Poor Man , Ike , Columbo , Diary of Ana Frank , The Name is the Game , Madigan , Masada. And he occassionally directed some films as Omega Man , The Helicopter Spies , Mosquito Squadron. Rating : 5.5/10 . Only for WWII enthusiasts.