Flying Leathernecks

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J H. @JLHIII Apr 5 Better than many post WWII war movies. The best part was Wayne and Ryan's characters conflict on war and attachment as commanders. Downside was typical Hollywood cheesy dialouge and predictable characters/situations. I dislike criticism of stock footage and effects. This was 1951..no CGI little budget movie censors was just Hollywood in 1951. Presentism such a problem in many areas including movies... See more CodyZamboni @CodyZamboni 08/09/2023 Overall, this is kind of backwards moviemaking. The producers got their hands on all this color combat footgage, and decided to make a movie around it. So when movie switches back and forth, between real and staged, it really took me out of the drama. That said, the movie is anchored by the two stars, which makes the film watchable. Especially John Wayne. This is a more hard edged WW2 role for him. He's tough as nails, and has no time to babysit and coddle his young squad, and he frequently calls out their bs. This is contrasted with Robert Ryan. He leadership style is to be one of the guys, be more empathetic, and the two leads clash alot, espcially when lives are lost. See more Andy F @RT81936104 02/27/2023 A tribute to the American servicemen that fought in the pacific war. This was forever on TV in the 1970s and 80s, The blending of real footage in the movie adds real gravitas. John Wayne is as fantastic as ever. See more 05/28/2022 A very entertaining WWII flick about marine dog fighters in the South Pacific. It's not a pet of WWII that gets much shown on film, so it's always a good to see a film handle it well. This is easily my favorite non cowboy role from John Wayne, who is very believable as a strict Major. Robert Ryan plays off Wayne well as the Captain under Wayne who have different philosophies on how to lead the men. The real footage used in the combat scenes is definitely a choice that at the time would've been cool, but now feels a little tasteless. Though it works for the flying scenes since it makes them feel more real. The film unfortunately kind of loses steam in the last 30 minutes when the soldiers come home and visit their families. It brings the momentum to a halt and definitely feels like the filmmakers knew it and added one last big aerial fight scene in at the end. Overall though this is a good WWII film with very good performances from its two leading men, a good Saturday afternoon flick for you and your dad. See more 06/13/2019 Well to put it simply...It kinda sucked!...It was your typical J.W. Movie and showed no imagination. All the stock footage was bad at most times but nothing as bad as the dialog.....This movie was a waste of popcorn...I'd give it maybe two stars...MAYBE..... See more 07/15/2018 The main problem with the Flying Leathernecks is that it doesn't really seem to have much of a backbone to help drive it or it's hardcore, war story along, outside of it's two extremely talented leads (Wayne and Ryan) and possibly it's dedication too and/ or honouring of the courageous Marine fighter pilots that participated in some of the most intense and epic battles in WWII. My grade for the film: an overall B-, maybe even a B See more Read all reviews

Flying Leathernecks

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