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Robert Taylor, Eleanor Parker, James Whitmore

The story of Colonel Paul Tibbets, the pilot of the Enola Gay, the bomber that dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima. Although unaware of the full potential of this new weapon, he knows that it is capa...( read more  read more... )ble of doing tremendously more damage than any other weapon used before, and that the death toll resulting from it will be enormous. He is reluctant to be the person who will end so many lives, but if using it may bring an end to the war, then not doing so may result in even more lives being lost in continued ground assaults as the fighting goes on. At the same time, the intense secrecy surrounding this mission leaves him with no one he can express his thoughts and doubts to, not even his wife. As time goes on, the pressure upon him only increase.

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60% liked it

107 ratings

Unrated, 122 min.

Directed by: Melvin Frank, Norman Panama

Release Date: November 21, 1952

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Flixster Reviews (10)

  • webalina
    September 1, 2009
    webalina
    Robert Taylor is (was) so pretty, I'll watch anything he's in. Luckily he made some decent movies over the years -- Waterloo Bridge, Rogue Cop, Camille, Johnny Eager. Above and Beyond is one of the better ones. It's the true story (I'm sure Hollywood-ized as much as they could g...( read more)et away with) of Col. Paul Tibbets, the pilot who flew the Enola Gay to drop the atomic bomb on Hiroshima.

    This film basically gave Americans an idea of what actually was going on before and during the decision to bomb Japan. Not a war movie, but a movie about war, and in particular the "war at home." Eleamor Parker plays Tibbets' wife Lucy, who goes through hell in trying to hold her marriage together with a man who holds all sorts of secrets he's forbidden to share with her, almost to the point of divorcet. He's not allowed to tell her about the plans for Japan, so she assumes the problem must be with him or her. It's torturous for both of them.

    The title of the film I felt was significant for not only what the pilots were being asked to do, but also for what Tibbets was required to do -- keep secrets from his family, weeks and months away from home, pretend his marriage is no longer a priority -- going "above and beyond the call of duty" in protecting the mission. I was surprised by my reaction to the scenes where the bomb is being dropped, and the aftermath -- burning streets, flattened buildings -- seen from the sky (was that real footage or faked?). I actually teared up at the thought of what these men had to do, and what the survivors on the ground were going through, and just how horrific -- although likely necessary (the jury's still out in my mind) -- the whole thing was.

    Robert Taylor to me has always been under-rated. Yeah, most of his characterizations are probably just him playing himself, but doesn't Clint Eastwood, John Wayne and many others basically do the same thing? He's not a GREAT actor, but he's convinced me well enough numerous times. But even when he's bad, he's still good....yummy.
  • necrobeast666
    September 5, 2009
    necrobeast666
    Great film...a lil slow paced but still worth a watch.
  • hypathio7
    July 16, 2008
    hypathio7
    nominated for best picture by NBR

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Above and Beyond Trivia

  • Which 1952 film portrayed the account of the U.S. pilot who flew over Hiroshima with the first atomic bomb?  Answer »
  • Jason Biggs is engaged to marry Amanda Peet but his friends know best and go above and beyond friendship to prove it.   Answer »
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