New Battle of Britain film ????

To do the film justice for the “big screen” it will cost a lot and producers will probably not see the return they want or need.

I think perhaps Frazer Nash is right. Dark Blue World did not do massive sales at the box office (though it had the handicap of being a foreign-language film), and although Pearl Harbor did impressive business, it had the advantage of being a Hollywood blockbuster.

And the less said about the two recent World War One flicks, the better… :rolleyes:

“I’m not sure there’s a box-office market for air-war films anymore”

I think that is the key comment. Maybe a made-for-TV financed film but not as a feature film for full theatre distribution.

******, I should have been a wee bit more specific: I can’t think of a good modern one. Flyboys was bloody awful.

Dawn Patrol et all : classics.

Aces High: hmmm…..passable. Certainly not memorable for mine, wooden acting, cliched, inaccurate aircraft (that’s really nitpicking).

Ahh, maybe I’m just grumpy in my old age.

Aces High??

The Dawn Patrol maybe?

I’m fairly certain Hell’s Angels doesn’t have any of that, either. It’s pretty bloodthirsty, even in comparison to Aces High….

I’ll apologise in advance for hijacking this thread to a certain degree, but the previous mention of ‘Flyboys’ got me thinking about WW1 aviation films. Bluntly: I can’t think of a good one. By this, I mean one that doesn’t feature salutes to the chivalrous foe as he goes down in flames, or the lace-clad Mademoiselle tearfully waving her brave pilote adieu as he sets forth to battle the Boche wearing her silk scarf round his neck.

I’m not sure there’s a box-office market for air-war films anymore.

Thoughts?

To be frank its no surprise to me, I know of several people owed considerable sums of money by this individual.

🙁 There will always be someone ready to exploit others. Personally I am relieved that there may never be a remake.

Graham

Back to your original post back in October….

Here is something that perhaps draws a line under this particular organisation’s plans to “re-make the Battle of Britain film”. It would appear that the organisation may not have been all that it seemed to be and that things may now be rather more unlikely to happen with the film than was ever the case in the first place:

http://blogs.mirror.co.uk/investigations/2011/01/their-finest-hour-isnt-john-ha.html

Or will the ‘re-structuring and re-financing’ put things back on track?

We’ll see. Of course, on the other hand, this piece of journalism may have got things all wrong.

Nah, I agree….the polystyrene dam is awesome! Couldn’t be bettered with CGI.

But on the other hand, it had real Lancasters, not Chinese full scale models.

Yes, it’s a bit corny with its “stiff upper lip” theme but touching in its own way. I love the shots of the empty crew rooms. A classic.

My point is simple, not everything needs to be reshot for the sake of colour and modern sensibilities.

Nah, I agree….the polystyrene dam is awesome! Couldn’t be bettered with CGI. And the dog isn’t called “Trigger” or “Nigsy”, either.

After re-vierwing The Dam Busters last night, I’m not sure that film needs redoing either.

And yes, TCM left the dogs name intact.

…….you are needing muchly, to get out more.:D

(like me)

Baz

I think that all of you are missing the obvious solution. Just look around you and the answer’s there!

What’s big today? The answer is music and dance, cooking and avoiding reality. So……

Start with ‘Battle of Britain – the Musical’. From that you can then spin off into the London stage version. Once that has run for longer than ‘The Mousetrap’, then you make a film of the stage musical. In the meantime you work on persuading BBC TV to run with ‘Strictly Come Dogfighting’. At the same time take Simon Cowell out to lunch to sell to him the concept of a programme based on the US Eagle squadrons of the RAF called ‘The Tex Factor’. Wait long enough and when the rights to ‘Battle of Britain – the Musical’ have been sold to Andrew Lloyd-Webber, then you have the opportunity to do ‘How to you solve a problem like Lord Dowding’ before relaunching the musical on the London stage. In the meantime you need to be thinking about exploiting the concept on the worldwide market. In Germany you could do ‘The Third Reich had Talent’. Maybe in the USA try ‘Dancing with the Stars is better than getting involved in a European conflict’.

And then there’s the culinary angle. Get former Luftwaffe pilots to compete against former RAF pilots in the kitchen and call it ‘Master Race’. Or get the Egg Marketing Board to sponsor a pro-am cook off, hosted by Ainsley Harriott from the officers mess at Kenley, entitled ‘Ready, Steady, Scramble’. But if that still has not produced adequate sponsorship and advertising revenue, then get Nigella Lawson, wearing nothing more than a Mae West, to present ‘Nigella Fights’!

I haven’t even had the time to work on Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall and ‘RAF River Cottage’ or a reality TV programme where four modern day families go back to re-enact the Battle of Britain (perhaps using the Smart cars?) or ‘I’m a downed Spitfire pilot in France, get me out of here’!

Now those who are interested in investing in all or any of these projects, you can pay me using PayPal at lordlucan.co.tv. I’m waiting!

If they do make a new film the big question will be “what will be the name of the dog?”

😀

oh I dunno, they bought up a hundred aircraft on a ‘expeditionary force’ during the BoB. I bet Andy Saunders would know more on this subject.

It wouldn’t be a very long film then… :diablo:

What about the Italian point of view?

http://www.armchairgeneral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=74274

Baz

As for remaking BoB, they could do it from the German Luftwaffe point of view.

I’d be up for that. There’s three airworthy Buchons in Europe that’d be more than capable of taking part!

No it won’t happen, its got too much of a British slant on the story line so not suitable for world wide general viewing.

Graham