Battle of Britain (1969) on Netflix
In 1940, Britain faces Germany alone. Keith Park's fighter group takes on a larger Luftwaffe, while Squadron Leaders Canfield and Harvey bring the RAF's newest pilots into the fight.
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Plot summary
After France falls in June 1940, Britain stands alone against Germany. Adolf Hitler holds back his attacks in the hope that Britain will accept peace terms, and in neutral Switzerland the German ambassador puts those terms to his British counterpart. The delay gives the commanders of the Royal Air Force time to train pilots and ground controllers, while German troops rehearse amphibious landings that cannot proceed until the RAF is destroyed. Keith Park commands 11 Group, which flies up to meet the raiders, and Trafford Leigh-Mallory's 12 Group is meant to shield the airfields; the two disagree over how to attack. The Germans open their offensive on Eagle Day, knocking out radar stations at Ventnor and Dover and damaging airfields across southern England.
Cast
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Did you know?!Facts and trivia about Battle of Britain (1969)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- Generalleutnant Adolf Galland, the wartime ace the character Major Falke is based on, served as the film's German technical adviser; upset that his real name was not used, he took exception to a scene showing Kesselring give the Nazi salute rather than the standard military one, spoiled a shot and had to be escorted off the set.
- The idea came in mid-September 1965 when S. Benjamin Fisz, a former Hurricane pilot, watched aircraft practicing over Hyde Park for Battle of Britain day and saw that teenagers did not recognize them.
- Pilot Officer Archie, played by Edward Fox, is based on Ray Holmes of No. 504 Squadron RAF, who on 15 September 1940 found his guns inoperative in a head-on attack and flew his Hawker Hurricane into a Dornier Do 17 over London, cutting off its tail at the cost of his aircraft and almost his life.
- The RAF officer with a disfigured face who appears in a scene with Kenneth More and Susannah York was not an actor but retired Squadron Leader Bill Foxley, a trainee navigator with RAF Bomber Command who suffered severe burns after a crash and became known for the support he gave to other burn victims.
- After the recording sessions Arnold and David Picker, the uncle and nephew in charge of United Artists, had the music tracks sent to New York, judged them unsuitable when heard without the film and ordered a replacement score; John Barry, who had scored several James Bond films, declined, and Ron Goodwin took the job.
- Eventually 100 aircraft were employed, a fleet large enough to be called the "35th largest air force in the world."
- After filming began the English weather proved too unreliable, so the production moved to the Hal Far and Luqa airfields in Malta to complete the aerial sequences.
