Memphis Belle (1990)

Featured Audience Ratings

• Randy T

  
  A Hollywood bastardization of the truth. The crew of the Belle would have been much better served by an independent film company, fewer 'stars' and better actors. Still, even a big production studio couldn't entirely extinguish the heroic aura of these men and what… More
  A Hollywood bastardization of the truth. The crew of the Belle would have been much better served by an independent film company, fewer 'stars' and better actors. Still, even a big production studio couldn't entirely extinguish the heroic aura of these men and what they accomplished. A gripping true story, in spite of the fact that it's littered with cliche characters and meaningless subplots.

• Anthony L

  
  Liked it a lot when I was younger but I now wince at the clichés and the overall Hollywood cheese! Good cast though!

• Candy R

  
  Movie about WWII bombers. Good cast.

• Alexander W

  
  Pilot film about airforce yanks in the world war 2

• danny d

  
  fantastic war flick

• xGary X

  
  The first section of the film is an unbelievably cheesy soap opera, as we get to know the cardboard cut-out characters before their bombing raid over hostile territory. The second is a brilliantly done aerial combat sequence as we follow them on their ill fated mission. A game of two… More
  The first section of the film is an unbelievably cheesy soap opera, as we get to know the cardboard cut-out characters before their bombing raid over hostile territory. The second is a brilliantly done aerial combat sequence as we follow them on their ill fated mission. A game of two halfs indeed.

• Dean !

  
  A pretty good war film based around the flight of a bomber and its crew.

• Tom E

  
  Best Male-bonding film I've ever seen --

• Dean M

  
  Average adventure of World War II heroics.

• Mark K

  
  Despite taking many liberties with the reality of the actual plane and crew, Memphis Belle is a relatively good film with some good acting and tense situations. It was also a career starter for a number of young actors. The overall tone of the film is an optimistic view of the sheer… More
  Despite taking many liberties with the reality of the actual plane and crew, Memphis Belle is a relatively good film with some good acting and tense situations. It was also a career starter for a number of young actors. The overall tone of the film is an optimistic view of the sheer heroism of simply flying in one of these bombers. They aren't really portraying one bomber crew, but it's more a composite of the many very young men that risked and gave their lives on these missions. You can call the characters a bit stereotypical, because they are composites. However it takes nothing away from the story, which suggests that some of the veteran crews were pretty good at the teamwork necessary to survive; or at least be able to alter the odds a little more in their favor. Evidence of training and discipline did contribute to some crews surviving tough missions. read about actor Jimmy Stewart's career, and you can see that he was considered a 'lucky' commander. The film, Memphis Belle captures some good drama on and off the ground. It hints at, but doesn't fully exploit the stress that these young men were under. Only the navigator is really a nervous wreck for most of the mission, but everyone has moments of terror in the film. The B-17 as an aircraft also gets good exposure here, even though they had only a handful of flying examples to CGI the vast squadrons that characterized the later war missions. The terrible randomness and helplessness on the missions comes off well. You can't help but wince at some of the scenes like the bomber chopped in half, and the desperate 'counting of the chutes' by the Belle's crew. As a purely historical film, it has many flaws that others will no doubt pick at, but they're not fatal. It's never dull, and it's got an everyman character for most to sympathize with, whatever your background or temperment.

• Marcus W

  
  The ladies-man, the rascal, the serious one, the poet and the neurotic go to Germany, bomb a factory and come home again. Inbetween, the bravery of all those that have died during the war is pointed out. Bizarrely, considering what happens, all the pilots make it back alive - which is… More
  The ladies-man, the rascal, the serious one, the poet and the neurotic go to Germany, bomb a factory and come home again. Inbetween, the bravery of all those that have died during the war is pointed out. Bizarrely, considering what happens, all the pilots make it back alive - which is a massive cop out, true story or not. Most soaps are more exciting. It does have quite a good score mind.

• Moe E

  
  Hollywood's interpretation of the events surrounding the B-17 bomber, Memphis Belle, and crew's 25th and final mission over Germany during WWII. Matthew Modine and Eric Stoltz lead an excellent ensemble cast of young actors in this ode to those valiant airmen who took to the… More
  Hollywood's interpretation of the events surrounding the B-17 bomber, Memphis Belle, and crew's 25th and final mission over Germany during WWII. Matthew Modine and Eric Stoltz lead an excellent ensemble cast of young actors in this ode to those valiant airmen who took to the skies in an effort to crush Hitler's war-making capabilities as preparation for the inevitable Allied ground assault on Nazi occupied Europe.

Read all 12 featured audience ratings