Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines or How I Flew fro Poster

Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines or How I Flew fro (1965)

Adventure | Family 
Rayting:   7.0/10 7.6K votes
Country: UK
Language: English | French
Release date: 16 July 1965

Sabotage efforts damage an international air race.

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adrian-43767 5 November 2017

I first watched this movie in a remote part of colonial Mozambique, brought around by a touring Catholic priest, and projected on a bed sheet, with all the local residents sitting on grass.

Perhaps because most locals had never watched a film before, or seen aircraft, what I remember is people laughing throughout, with some kids (including me) trying to imitate what went on the screen.

I remember finding Gert Frobe and Cassel very funny. Since then, I have watched this movie some four times at different points in my life and I've always found it both touchingly absurd and uproariously funny in parts. One can find many loopholes in the story, but that hardly matters in a well-intentioned film clearly determined to get a good laugh out of you.

Dejael 31 August 2003

Fmovies: One of the best films of 1965, and a spectacular wide-screen Stereorama epic of a fictional 1910 air race held in Merrie Olde England, TMMITFM is an unqualified success in all departments. Excellent in every way! Released circa late June 1965 at the same time as its similar-themed colorful competitor, Blake Edwards' boffo comedy The GREAT RACE, this pair of old-time era comedies were highlights of the international cinema experience in the summer of 1965 with the exception of The Beatles' brilliant farce HELP! and Michael Caine's first appearance as Harry Palmer in The IPCRESS FILE. Originally presented in 70mm Todd-AO Wide Screen 2:20:1 and 6-Track Magnetic Stereo, filmed in 65mm Todd-AO, this superb film features awesome DeLuxe Color cinematography, surround sound Stereo, a fine cast of dramatic and comic performers, a marvelously rousing music-hall style vocal theme song and brilliant vintage music and symphonic orchestral soundtrack score by Ron Goodwin (The BATTLE OF Britain), and a dozen or so absolutely meticulously maintained vintage aircraft from the early days of aviation, along with period costumes, makeup and antique automobiles including a marvelous Rolls Royce Silver Ghost. Also over-the-top is the cleverly-done vintage sepiatone nickelodeon-newsreel style film intro prologue featuring Red Skelton as comical characters seeking to fly and hilariously flopping. Brilliantly conceived and directed by British director Ken Annakin. Production Design and Art Direction are flawlessly crafted. Acting kudos to lovely British ingenue Sarah Miles, with the proper Edward Fox, American cowboy Stuart Whitman, stuff-shirt Robert Morley, dastardly Terry-Thomas and bombastic Gert Frobe (GOLDFINGER) heading a sparkling cast of internationals. Fox wisely released this blockbuster comedy available on Wide-Screen surround-sound Stereo DVD in 2003, and it should still be available. (The flat-ratio VHS tape just doesn't do it justice. We want to see ALL the picture!!!) Absolutely highly recommended for ALL ages! A Magnificent film!

silverscreen888 28 June 2005

"Those Magnificent Men" probably looked on story boards like merely a colorful, often humorous and very enactable satire of an era, of its nations and of the early days of manned flight. Its plot line involved an international air race, from England to Paris, for whose prizes competitors in home-made aircraft from all over the world would journey to compete. The racers included Stuart Whitman aided by his brother Sam Wanamaker (Wilbur and Orville) from the U.S., James Fox of England, Albert Sordi from Italy, Gert Frobe and his team from Germany, Jean-Pierre Cassell and his ebullient hard-drinking group from France, plus a Scotsman and his dog, the villainous Sir Percy and his henchman, Terry-Thomas and Eric Sykes, a Japanese entrant and many others. Others in the large cast of the ensuing film also included Robert Morely as the wealthy patrician organizer of the race, a rather weak Sarah Miles as his daughter, beautiful Irina Demick who keeps turning up in every locale (in a new persona) and many more. But what the film's makers forgot was that the bravery and beauty of these canvas-winged and wooden primitive aircraft taking off and actually achieving flight would upstage even the often-hilarious comedy of the well-written proceedings. Using Red Skelton as "every man who has ever dreamed of flight", the producers prepared for the race, staged the race, and awarded the prizes--the climax being the arrival of the racers and what happened near the finish line, plus a justly happy ending. The film was written by Ken Annakin with Jack Davies, and Annakin directed it very competently also. Ron Goodwin's music and title song are well-remembered treats too. Others in the large, attractive cast include narrator James Robertson Justice, Gordon Jackson, Zena Marshall, Karl Michael Vogler, Yujiro Ishihara, Benny Hill, Flora Robson and Jeremy Lloyd. The film's pace is beautifully varied and consistently-maintained; the action includes acts of sabotage by the villains, practice flights gone wrong, low-comedy, a duel between the dour Frobe and devil-may-care Cassell conducted in hot air balloons, national humor at the expense of all concerned and incidents before and during the race. This is a very well-acted film; but the fine technical achievements and subordinate arts here had to take a back seat to the flight of the many wonderful "early birds", who outshone even the amusing national types who flew them. A much-imitated and superior comedy classic of its sort.

skallisjr 6 May 2005

Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines or How I Flew fro fmovies. An interesting collection of early aircraft in a lighthearted comedy. Set in the early 1900s, an "international" air race, from England to France, and of course across the English Channel, was proposed, ostensibly to advance aviation. Naturally, the film presents cultural/national stereotypes, but not maliciously.

Spoilers in the following.

One stereotype is the German team leader, played be Gert Frobe, who is so systematized that when his pilot is sick, feels that simply following the instruction books would enable him to fly the German entry. And it works, for a while. (Aside: taking off and guiding such ragwings could possibly work, but textbooks or no, the landings probably would be worth watching on something like America's Funniest Home Videos.) His antics, as his aircraft gets into trouble, thumbing frantically through his manuals, is classic.

The very end of the film (not counting the Red Skelton epilogue)is amusing. When it was filmed, the contrast of the early aircraft with modern jets was rather neat, but watching those antique jets now is rather quaint.

boris-26 24 December 2000

You'll never forget the silly, marching band styled theme song to this 1965 comedy. Made during a period of big budgeted, epic, widescreen comedies with a big cast. Stuart Whitman is charming as the American entry into a multi-national air race between London and Paris in 1910. Sarah Miles, Terry-Thomas, Gert Forde, Benny Hill and James Fox lend fine support. Lots of well arranged, well thought out slapstick as well as low key, charcater driven comedy (James Fox and Whitman are great as romantic rivals forced to share the same breathing space.) At 2 hours 18 minutes, alot of fun.

WeeWilly-2 1 March 1999

Centred around a London-to-Paris air race early in the 1900's, this is a wonderful English comedy spoofing national characteristics! You know the sort of thing, the expansive American hero, the fair-playing Englishman, the great French lover, the emotional Italian count, the enigmatic Japanese, the humourless pomp-loving German, and so on.

The casting is interesting, for this light-hearted movie's principal roles are filled by actors who are far more familiar playing the heavy: Stuart Whitman, Sarah Miles, James Fox, Jean-Pierre Cassel, and Gert Frobe. And make no mistake, they are superb at it!

Offending no-one of any age, this movie plays out against the back-drop of the air race, with a fantastic array of primitive aircraft. It is fun and full of life, tripping along easily and smoothly from one delightful absurdity to another. The English have made this movie, and while they have considerable fun at the expense of the Frenchman and the German, they cannot resist poking the bulk of the fun at themselves. They do so by augmenting the cast with the shifty Englishman (Terry-Thomas), the confidence man (Tony Hancock), and the foreigner-distrusting representative of the upper crust (Robert Morley).

This movie is a must see for anyone with any pretense to a sense of humour!

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