I confess, this is my husband's favorite military movie, along with STRATEGIC AIR COMMAND, so I got this for him to read.

"THE BATTLE OF BRITAIN is probably one of the best military aviation films ever made. Even the non-military romance scenes between Susannah York and Christopher Plummer have a wartime immediacy involved. The film is unique in that it shows the Germans not as goose-stepping caricatures, but as real military men. The aviation battles are some of the best ever filmed. The book covers all aspects of the film, breaking down the movie almost scene by scene, as well as its predecessor films ANGELS ONE FIVE, FIRST FLIGHT, and the classic SPITFIRE with Leslie Howard. The book includes photographs from behind the scenes of making the film, some rare, and there were also short narratives about the actors and the major characters in real life.

"If you are a fan of the film, of the story of the real Battle of Britain, and/or World War II aviation films in general, you will love this book."

Princess Fuzzypants here: Never have so many owed so much to so few. Those immortal words still ring true more than 80 years later. Shortly after the Phoney War and the Blitzkrieg that changed the face of Europe in short weeks, Britain, and her Commonwealth, stood alone. Before venturing across the Channel to invade, Goering had promised Hitler, he could defeat the island from the air before any soldier needed to step foot on British soil. If not for the courage of the RAF and the intelligence of husbanding their limited resources, the history of the world would have been vastly different. I did not realize that so few films had been made specifically about the short and bloody part of the war. There have been lots of films where it was a part of the story. This book looks at the select few, some filmed during the actual conflict and some as late as 2010.

It is a fascinating look at where myth and literary license altered the truth both in the events and in the characters who are portrayed on screen. It also looks at how actual footage or footage from previous films was used in other productions. The passage of time and the availability of the real airplanes forced some decisions. The influence of various real life people who participated in the events also coloured the movies. One really interesting part of the book is almost a scene by scene description of the script and evidence that either substantiates or conflicts with what is on the screen. It is told in such a way that I would like to go out and watch the films again. Whether it is factual of poetic license, we should not forget what these heroes did to save the world.

Four purrs and two paws up.

This analysis contains lots of anecdotes, and details about famous British war movies, such as The Battle of Britain and A Bridge Too Far, and their famous stars, including Audie Murphy, Laurence Olivier and Dirk Bogarde. Although Audie Murphy had an interesting life, rising from a poor boyhood picking cotton to becoming a soldier who won every medal, and becoming a wealthy movie-star, I was keener to read about the latter two. I enjoyed reading about Olivier's war service, and the making of his famous films, such as That Hamilton Woman and Henry V (which he actually directed himself!) I also didn't realise that Alexander Korda was probably a spy, or that Churchill played a big part in the making of That Hamilton Woman, his favourite film.

The story of Dirk Bogarde, who analysed aerial photographs for intelligence, was even more fascinating. He had an anguished time, because of hiding his homosexuality, and he was one of the first to liberate Belsen. He never forgot the sights there, and Dilip Sarkar tells how she interviewed the great Bogarde when she was a young journalist. He was apparently incredibly anxious to tell people the truth about the horrors of the Holocaust, especially in the light of anti-Semitism and Holocaust-denial, rampant at the time.

I received this free ebook from NetGalley in return for an honest review.

An interesting take on how The Battle of Britain was shown on the Big Screen. Some parts were a little dry but overall a good read. Than, you to NetGalley and the publisher for the early read.

This is a really interesting book because it challenges our concept of what history is and how it is captured and shared. I enjoyed the author’s analysis of how facts translated into fictional accounts and how this led to societal focus on and understanding of key events in history.