Strategic Air Command (1955)

User Rating:

6.2/10   

Director:

Anthony Mann

Writers:

Valentine Davies (screenplay)
Beirne Lay Jr. (screenplay)

Release Date:

12 July 1955 (Japan)

Genre:

Action | Drama

Plot:

Lt. Col. Robert (Dutch) Holland was a third baseman for the St. Louis Cardinals, not a pitcher. While...

Plot Keywords:

Airforce | U.S. Air Force | Bomber | Military | Military Wife

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 1 win

Cast

James Stewart	...	Lt. Col. Robert 'Dutch' Holland
June Allyson	...	Sally Holland
Frank Lovejoy	...	Gen. Ennis C. Hawkes
Barry Sullivan	...	Lt. Col. Rocky Samford
Alex Nicol	...	Ike Knowland
Bruce Bennett	...	Gen. Espy
Jay C. Flippen	...	Tom Doyle
James Millican	...	Major General 'Rusty' Castle
James Bell	...	Rev. Dr. Thorne
Rosemary DeCamp	...	Mrs. Thorne (as Rosemary De Camp)
Richard Shannon	...	Flight Instructor Pilot
John McKee	...	Capt. Symington (as John R. McKee)
Harry Morgan	...	Sgt. Bible (flight engineer) (as Henry Morgan)

Runtime:

112 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Perspecta Sound encoding) (Western Electric Recording)

Certification:

UK:U | Australia:PG | USA:Approved (certificate #17126) | West Germany:12 (nf) | Argentina:Atp | Finland:K-12 | Sweden:Btl

Filming Locations:

Al Lang Field - 180 2nd Avenue SE, St. Petersburg, Florida, USA

Company:

Paramount Pictures

Trivia:

James Stewart flew one combat mission over Vietnam while serving as a reservist and eventually retired as a Brigadier General.

Goofs:

Continuity: When getting ready to take off on the practice bombing run in the B47, the tail numbers are large and centered in the tail. In flight, we see small numbers at the top of the wing.

Quotes:

Lieutenant: We've been bombing cities every day and every night all over the U.S., only people never know it.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Smother (2008/II)

Great film for aviation buffs, not much else - and Thule AFB is in Greenland!

As commented before, what makes this picture different from most "military PR" pictures is that it is quite frank on the sacrifices made by the people who serve and their families which still goes on today. It makes me wonder how we get people to serve when the pay and benefit are really a mere pittance, although I can understand why Dutch Holland took all those flights when whiny June Allyson is your wife.

As for the aircraft - what a visual treat to see these grand aircraft of a bygone era in vivid color. Almost makes up for the lackluster story.

On a side note, a commenter stated that the film erred in placing Thule AFB in Greenland, but the film is correct, Thule is in Greenland, not Iceland.