Aces High

A young man caught up in the excitement of war – at least the war he’s read about in the papers – enlists and becomes a flyer for the RAF. It isn’t long, of course, before the reality of flying, fighting and dying in battle squashes his dewy-eyed dreams and he’s forced to face his fears head on. Directed by Jack Gold (The Medusa Touch), the film is filled with just about every war movie cliché you can imagine, but it never really feels dull or dated thanks to some strong acting and thrilling aerial fight scenes. Malcolm McDowell (A Clockwork Orange) stars as the war weary flight commander who can’t get into the cockpit until he’s had a few cocktails and it’s a relief to see a stock part like this played with humanity rather than gruff machismo. Christopher Plummer is also good as the old man of the squad whose bad leg keeps him from flying with his men.