The Flyboys (2008)

Simply A Masterpiece

Please don't spend money on this.

Very interesting film. Was caught on the premise when seeing the trailer but unsure as to what the outcome would be for the showing. As it turns out, it was a very good film.

Pretty good movie overall. First half was nothing special but it got better as it went along.

The Flyboys is a 2008 American adventure film starring Jesse James, Reiley McClendon, Stephen Baldwin, and Tom Sizemore. It is directed by Mr. Rocco DeVilliers who directed all but one other movie in his career. The movie has surprisingly similar title with the 'Flyboys', which is a 2006 American drama film set during World War I, starring James Franco. Besides the quintessential 'THE' the two movies are worlds apart. One is a patriotic, top class dogfight movie from First World War and the other one supposedly a kids movie.There are many disturbing elements in the movie. The beginning school fights with Kyle and the school bully legitimizes kid violence. It sends the message that its OK to punch out all the school bullies by breaking their noses.The most disturbing thing about the movie is the character of Tom Sizemore. He is apparently a criminal gangster who amassed a huge amount of wealth and live in a gaudy mansion. The first scene we see him, he picks up the phone and tells his goons to find the guy who stole his money and kill them. The movie leaves no Grey area to misjudge him. And yet, at the end, he turns out to be the good guy who gives a brand new plane to the protagonist. When his brother is shot and they go back to find his dead body, we see that he is averting the police. And yet, we are asked to believe that he is a good guy with a heart of gold.When Stephen Baldwin is making his final phone call, bloody and lying in the ground, it has got to be the worst acting among Baldwin brothers we have ever seen. Besides, how does a bloody killing fit a kids movie? We also see Lenny the looser randomly killing a household man and the airport mechanic. Aren't these killing scenes belong only in R rated movie? The movie became an embarrassment for the studio. It was shelved for six years before it saw the light of the day. When it came out, it was a critical and commercial flop. It got 40% rotten at rottentomatoes.com. It neither qualifies for a good adult movie, nor a wholesome kids movie.

A standout at the 2008 Daytona Beach Film Festival, ''The Flyboys'' deserves to be seen. Here's the review from Film Critic Jeff Farance:''The Flyboys'' 5 (of 5 stars)This is the sort of discovery that film festivals live for. As do festival audiences.To say it's a family film is to take nothing away from its maturity, its urgency and its adventure as two boys with a love of all things airborne become entwined in a mob plot to rip off a casino's cash haul by crashing the plane carrying it and its guards.A sprinkling of familiar faces (Stephen Baldwin, Tom Sizemore, Robert Costanzo) accent the fine performances by stars Jesse James and Reiley McClendon.But what's amazing is the total professionalism, including some palm-sweat-inducing aerial acrobatics and ground chase scenes, along with outstanding special effects. ''The Flyboys'' simply soars, and takes its audience along into the clouds for a breathtaking ride.

This is an adventure movie of two school boys who battle bullies and gangsters over the course of a couple of days. The film has some decent action scenes: the bike chase scene, landing the plane on a highway scene and the parachuting scene. And, any movie where Stephen Baldwin gets whacked can't be all that bad.I gave this movie a mediocre rating because it seems to straddle the line between a film made for older teens and one directed for young children. In doing so the film comes off as somewhat boring and juvenile for the older set and something reckless and inappropriate for the younger set. The film is somewhat reminiscent of Disney's 'Apple Dumpling Gang' or 'Escape From Witch Mountain' but also has a few action scenes like a James Bond flick.As to why this may be inappropriate for children. The film makers appear to be sensitive to language but not violence in the movie. For example, in one scene there is a struggle on an airplane where the proverbial bad guy uses the phrase 'dumb' plane instead of 'damn' plane; yet, here the latter phrase would seem more realistic --- after all he's a bad guy so he wouldn't likely curtail his language. In contrast, a fight scene in the school yard where one of the boys unrealistically punches-out three bullies is made to seem as if violence is cool.There is also a sense of recklessness that is portrayed as 'fun times' that would probably send up a bunch of red-flags for parents of young children. For example, there is the scene where the boys dart in and out of traffic on their bikes while being chased down by some bullies in a car while numerous accidents ensure along the way. The two boys willing get into a car and drive away with two strangers who turn out to be gangsters; don't parents warn children about not doing this all the time? And, the boys are found gleefully rolling around on the floor with another strange man who turns out to be a mob boss. This seems to be portrayed as okay because he's an affable mob boss. Enough said.

I totally agree with lulu's post of this movie. It has everything you could want in a M rated movie.Great action/adventure movie for the whole family. I was lucky enough to preview on DVD as a pre-sell (perk of the job). It took me through the whole range of emotions, with awesome suspense scenes which just took my breath away.It is coming to DVD in September in Australia, check out your good local video stores, if they are smart they will have multiple copies of this movie.A big thumbs up in my book!