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The 1965 comedy film Those Magnificent Men in their Flying Machines or How I Flew from London to Paris in 25 Hours 11 Minutes is set in 1910, at the dawn of aviation when Lord Rawnsley, an English press magnate, offers a prize of £10,000 sterling for the winner of an air race from London to Paris to prove that Britain is "Number One in the Air".
The original screenplay, written by Ken Annakin and Jack Davies, was nominated for an Academy Award. Ken Annakin also directed the film.
The success of the film prompted Annakin to write (again with Jack Davies) and direct another race movie, Monte Carlo or Bust (aka Those Daring Young Men in Their Jaunty Jalopies), released in 1969, this time involving vintage cars with the story set around the Monte Carlo Rally.
Plot
Sarah Miles plays the daughter of Lord Rawnsley (Robert Morley) whose favourite to win his race is none other than his daughter's fiancé, Richard Mays (James Fox). An international cast plays the array of international contestants, most of whom live up to their national stereotypes, including the fanatical monocle-wearing Prussian officer (Gert Fröbe), a sexy Frenchman (Jean-Pierre Cassel) and the brash American (Stuart Whitman) who falls for Lord Rawnsley's daughter. However the main entertainment comes from the amusing dialogue and characterisations and the daring aerial stunts, with a dash of heroism and gentlemanly conduct thrown in for good measure. Terry-Thomas plays the oily cheat Sir Percival Ware-Armitage, a cad who with the help of his bullied and downtrodden servant Courtney (Eric Sykes), sabotages other aircraft or drugs their pilots, only to get his fitting comeuppance in the end, in a manner reminiscent of the cartoon characters Dick Dastardly and Mutley.
Planes
The film is notable for its use of specially constructed replicas of monoplanes and biplanes flown by stunt pilots (in one case a female aviatrix). Many of the aircraft employed wing warping for directional control, which involved re-discovering how to fly them safely. Several of the aircraft had dangerous flaws and the pilots had a number of narrow escapes. But the realism and the attention to detail in the replicas of vintage machines add to the enjoyment of the film (although a few of the flying stunts were achieved through the use of models and cleverly disguised wires).
Cast
It featured a host of stars, mostly in cameo roles, among them:
- Gerald Campion
- Jean-Pierre Cassel
- Cicely Courtneidge
- Irina Demick
- Fred Emney
- James Fox
- Gert Fröbe
- Tony Hancock
- Benny Hill
- Yujiro Ishihara
- Gordon Jackson
- John Le Mesurier
- Zena Marshall
- Millicent Martin
- Sarah Miles
- Emmitt Nervend
- Flora Robson
- Norman Rossington
- Willie Rushton
- Red Skelton
- Alberto Sordi
- Eric Sykes
- Terry-Thomas
- Michael Trubshawe
- Karl Michael Vogler
- Sam Wanamaker
- Stuart Whitman
Crew
- Directed by Ken Annakin
- Written by Jack Davies & Ken Annakin
- Cinematography Christopher Challis
- Editing Gordon Stone & Anne V. Coates
- Music Ron Goodwin
- Art direction by Tom Morahan
- Special effects Richard Parker
- Stunt pilot Derek Piggott
External links
1965 films | Comedy films | British films | Films shot in 65mm
Die tollkühnen Männer in ihren fliegenden Kisten | Dessa fantastiska män i sina flygande maskiner (1965)
"Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines"