Above and Beyond (2015)

When a movie has you begging for it to end not even half way through it's pure crap. We've all seen this movie and this characters millions of times, nothing new in it. Don't waste your time.

A lot of perfectly good film show their cards early, establish a unique premise and let the audience explore a topic at a leisurely pace, without much in terms of surprise. this film is not one of those films.

what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.

The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.

A documentary about the formation of the Israeli Air Force in time to defend the fledgling nation as it declared independence.Starting with two Piper Cubs flown in across the Mediterranean on overload fuel tanks for 11 hours to create supply aircraft.In California C-46 and Constellations were purchased and smuggled out of America across the Atlantic by a circuitous route to create a transport command.Luftwaffe Me 109's were cobbled together with parts obtained through Czechoslovakia and assembled in Tel Aviv and flown straight into combat without any flight testing. The irony of flying in Luftwaffe equipment was not lost on many of the volunteer Jewish American pilots many who had less than 30 mins cockpit familiarization before flying into combat.The first combat ground attack by just four Me 109's stopped the Egyptian Army in its tracks as it started its invasion of Israel.3 smuggled B-17's were used to bomb Cairo with the US commercial pilots bluffing their way into Egypt pretending to be TWA flights.Ultimately the Israelis obtained Spitfires which led to the only known Spitfre/Spitfire combats with the Egyptian Air Force Spits.With commentary by pilots who flew and with contemporary footage and photography. An interesting testament to the pilots who turned the tide in Israel's favor.

I really enjoyed this incredibly interesting documentary on the little known story about young Americans (and other internationals) who came together and volunteered to protect and defend the fledgling Israeli state from the invading Arab armies. We'll likely never get a movie about it; which is a shame because it would be one heck of a true story for Hollywood to tell. As it was, the footage was remarkable as it was presented; with the actual participants vividly describing the events as if it happened yesterday. You'll cheer, you'll laugh, you'll cry. And that's not to mention it's also full of a some surprises. A hint is in the cast list.

Above and Beyond is the first documentary that I've seen that blends a terrific true story with state of the art computer generated imagery (CGI). I'm sure that the Spielberg Family dumped a huge amount of money into the project and it shows; the airplane footage appeared so authentic you believed that it was contemporary footage, filmed out of the cockpits of the planes back in 1948. Think of the first 30 minutes of "Saving Private Ryan." I found this so appealing as I have always been turned off by the "dramatic recreations" that are so common in today's lesser war story documentaries. But the imagery would have been nothing without a great true story and this one could only be called a true modern day miracle. And so surprising and ironic.. particularly the pedigree of the airplanes that turned back the invading Arab armies. Anyone interested in the 20th Century warfare would greatly enjoy. For although it is a documentary, it ranks up with the best war movies that have ever been produced.

An amazing story of yet another example of the world greatest generation. Well done documentary with the right touches and details so difficult to uncover due to the secretive nature of the effort in the 1940's. Laced with real footage and interviews or those that were there, it doesn't get any better. I highly recommend the film. You have to ask yourself how would it feel to have the choices these people had. And what would you do? It is historically correct and therefore not iced over with drama. It's just the way it was. I am so glad someone captured this noble effort in history. You will enjoy this film. I recommend it to all.