Spitfire | |
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Directed by |
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Produced by |
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Narrated by | Charles Dance |
Cinematography |
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Edited by | David Fairhead |
Music by | Chris Roe |
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Distributed by | Gravitas Ventures |
Release date |
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Running time | 97 minutes |
Country | United Kingdom |
Language | English |
Budget | £800,000 |
Box office | $722,623 (worldwide) |
Spitfire is a 2018 British documentary feature film about the history of the Supermarine Spitfire and its last surviving pilots during World War II. The film was released in commemoration of the centenary of the Royal Air Force and features narration by Charles Dance. [1]
Using archival footage and new aerial footage of surviving Spitfires filmed over Southern England and the Cliffs of Dover, the film traces the history of the plane's development beginning with its design inspiration from a seaplane designed by manufacturer Supermarine that won the 1931 Schneider Trophy. The documentary also uses clips from the 1942 film The First of the Few in which director and lead actor Leslie Howard portrays Spitfire designer R.J. Mitchell. The film then follows the evolving design and roles of the Spitfire through the Battle of Britain, the Siege of Malta, the Normandy landings, until its eventual retirement after the war.
The documentary interviews modern day pilots, museum curators, and several surviving members of fighter squadrons and the air auxiliaries, such as RAF flying ace Tom Neil and Air Transport Auxiliary pilot Mary Ellis, one of the last surviving women British pilots from the World War II. At the end of the film, Ellis is shown being reunited with Spitfire MV154 which bears Ellis' original signature from 1944, which she again signed on film. Both Neil and Ellis died just days after the film's release. The film is dedicated to "the memory of the pilots of all nations who flew and fought in the Second World War."
The documentary held its world premiere on July 9, 2018 at the Curzon Mayfair Cinema in London as part of the 100th year celebrations of the Royal Air Force. [2] The premiere was attended by narrator Charles Dance, TV personality Carol Vorderman (an honorary Group Captain for the RAF Air Cadets), and guest-of-honor Sqn Ldr. Alan Scott, one of the Spitfire flying aces featured in the film.
Prior to its public release, the filmmakers held previews in RAF bases, and in select cinemas near important sites to the Spitfire's history such as Southampton (the site of its maiden flight and Supermarine's former factory), Stoke-on-Trent (the birthplace of R.J. Mitchell) and Solihull (near the former Castle Bromwich Aircraft Factory.) [3]
Spitfire received positive reviews. On the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds a 94% approval rating based on 18 reviews with an average rating of 7.0/10. [4]
Writing for The Daily Telegraph , Tristram Fane Saunders awarded the film four out of five stars, particularly praising the interviews with the pilots that "give this film its broader purpose and appeal." [5] Mike McCahill of The Guardian gave the film three out of five stars, lauding how the film is "guaranteed to spike the pulse rates of aeronautical enthusiasts" but criticized how it "can seem a trifle coy about addressing the consequences of combat." [1]
Reginald Joseph Mitchell was a British aircraft designer who worked for the Southampton aviation company Supermarine from 1916 until 1936. He is best known for designing racing seaplanes such as the Supermarine S.6B, and for leading the team that designed the Supermarine Spitfire.
The Supermarine Walrus was a British single-engine amphibious biplane designed by Supermarine's R. J. Mitchell at their works at Woolston, Southampton. Primarily used as a maritime patrol aircraft, it was the first British squadron-service aircraft to incorporate an undercarriage that was fully retractable, crew accommodation that was enclosed, and a fuselage completely made of metal.
MoD Sealand, is a Ministry of Defence installation in Flintshire, in the northeast corner of Wales, close to the border with England. It is a former Royal Air Force station, active between 1916 and 2006.
The First of the Few is a 1942 British black-and-white biographical film produced and directed by Leslie Howard, who stars as R. J. Mitchell, the designer of the Supermarine Spitfire fighter aircraft.
No. 610 Squadron of the Royal Air Force was a Squadron of the Auxiliary Air Force. Comprising very high quality pilots, often ex-RAF officers and occasionally locally based company Test pilots from companies such as de Havilland and Airwork, its pilots were initially part timers who would spend their weekends and spare time flying and practising combat manoeuvres. The squadron was named the "County of Chester" and adopted the motto "Alifero tollitur axe ceres"; which translates as "Ceres rising in a winged chariot", Ceres being the Roman Goddess of Wheat, a reference to Chester's Agricultural sector. Its badge contained the image of a garb.
No. 74 Squadron, also known as 'Tiger Squadron' from its tiger-head motif, was a squadron of the Royal Air Force (RAF). It operated fighter aircraft from 1917 to the 1990s, and then trainer aircraft until its disbandment in 2000. It was the Royal Air Force's member of the NATO Tiger Association from 1961 until the squadron's disbandment, it has since been replaced by No. 230 Squadron.
No. 603 Squadron is a squadron of the Royal Auxiliary Air Force, based in Edinburgh, Scotland. On reforming on 1 October 1999, the primary role of 603 Squadron was as a Survive to Operate squadron, as well as providing force protection.
The Supermarine S.6B is a British racing seaplane developed by R.J. Mitchell for the Supermarine company to take part in the Schneider Trophy competition of 1931. The S.6B marked the culmination of Mitchell's quest to "perfect the design of the racing seaplane" and represented the cutting edge of aerodynamic technology for the era.
The Air Transport Auxiliary (ATA) was a British civilian organisation set up at the start of the Second World War with headquarters at White Waltham Airfield in Berkshire. The ATA ferried new, repaired and damaged military aircraft between factories, assembly plants, transatlantic delivery points, maintenance units (MUs), scrapyards, and active service squadrons and airfields, but not to naval aircraft carriers. It also flew service personnel on urgent duty from one place to another and performed some air ambulance work. Notably, around 10% of its pilots were women, and from 1943 they received equal pay to their male colleagues, a first for the British government.
No. 609 Squadron of the Royal Auxiliary Air Force, originally formed as a bomber squadron and in the Second World War active as fighter squadron, nowadays provides personnel to augment and support the operations of the Royal Air Force. The squadron is no longer a flying squadron, but instead has the role of Force Protection. It is currently based at RAF Leeming, North Yorkshire.
Raynham George Hanna, was a New Zealand-born fighter pilot who emigrated to England to join the Royal Air Force (RAF). During his RAF career he was a founding member of the Red Arrows aerobatics display team. He also founded The Old Flying Machine Company, which commercially flies Second World War vintage fighter aircraft at air displays around the world, and for television and cinematic productions. He was a Spitfire display pilot in the latter half of the 20th century, noted for his daring aerobatic stunt flying.
No. 501 Squadron was the 14th of the 21 flying units in the Royal Auxiliary Air Force, the volunteer reserve part of the British Royal Air Force. The squadron won seven battle honours, flying Hurricane, Spitfire and Tempest fighter aircraft during World War II, and was one of the most heavily engaged units in RAF Fighter Command. In particular, the Squadron saw extensive action during the Battle of France and Battle of Britain. At present the unit is not flying any more and has a logistics role as part of No 85 Expeditionary Logistics Wing.
Jeffrey Kindersley Quill, was a British test pilot who served on secondment with the Royal Air Force and Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve during the Second World War. He was also the second man to fly the Supermarine Spitfire after Vickers Aviation's chief test pilot, Joseph "Mutt" Summers. After succeeding Summers as Vickers' chief test pilot, Quill test-flew every mark of Spitfire. Quill's work on the aircraft aided its development from a promising but untried prototype to become, with the Hawker Hurricane, an instrument of the Royal Air Force's victory in the Battle of Britain. The Spitfire later played a leading role in gaining Allied air superiority over Europe. Quill later wrote two books about the Spitfire.
Spitfire 944 is a short documentary in which the 83-year-old World War II pilot John S. Blyth views 16mm footage of his 1944 Spitfire crash-landing for the first time, 61 years after the event.
Number 601 Squadron is a squadron of the RAF Reserves, based in London. The squadron took part in the Battle of Britain, during which the first Americans to fly in World War II were members of the squadron.
The Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft used by the Royal Air Force and other Allied countries before, during, and after World War II. Many variants of the Spitfire were built, from the Mk 1 to the Rolls-Royce Griffon-engined Mk 24 using several wing configurations and guns. It was the only British fighter produced continuously throughout the war. The Spitfire remains popular among enthusiasts; around 70 remain airworthy, and many more are static exhibits in aviation museums throughout the world.
Wing Commander Peter Olver, DFC was a British World War II Royal Air Force Battle of Britain Supermarine Spitfire fighter ace.
Wasp Wings is a 42-minute 1945 Canadian documentary film made by the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) Overseas Film Unit and the National Film Board of Canada (NFB). The film takes its name from the colourful markings known as invasion stripes that were painted on Supermarine Spitfire fighter aircraft on D-Day, making them look like "angry wasps".
Mary Ellis was a British ferry pilot, and one of the last surviving British women pilots from the Second World War.