That was an excellent one.

It's a movie as timely as it is provocative and amazingly, for much of its running time, it is weirdly funny.

A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

Watching it is like watching the spectacle of a class clown at their best: you laugh at their jokes, instigate their defiance, and "ooooh" when they get in trouble.

John Ford took the inspiration for this film from the actual life story of Frank 'spig' Wead, (John Wayne) who was a naval aviator and Hollywood writer. The film follows him through his early days after Annapolis and his life time competition with the U.S. Army. Despite it being a comical look at the silly escapades with his life-time friends in the army and navy, it also illuminates the guilt laden sorrow between his wife (Maureen O'Hara) and the unfortunate tragedy like the loss of his first son which the couple had to endure. Among them was the accidental fall he took at home which left him paralyzed. Through it, he was blessed with friends like 'Jughead' Carson who nursed him back through his mishap and onto the deck of a Naval ship. John Dale Price (Ken Curtis) and Herbert Allen Hazard (Kenneth Tobey) life times friends who saw their friend into the sunset of his life. All in all, this is a fun film for all and a definite inspiration to all who think of losing hope. A Great film for Wayne and a movie which became a Classic for his fans. Easily recommended to all. ****

July 23, 2006.A very enjoyable movie, about the life of a military patriot. Reasonably skilled blending of comedy, with serious issues of history.I was a bit surprised, however, to see a historical error in dialog.While John Wayne was reviewing the film of the burning carrier, the USS Hornet, he stated that it was destroyed by Kamikaze attacks, three total with two hitting the target.The Hornet was sunk during the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands, on October 26th, 1942, after being hit by numerous torpedoes, bombs from dive bombers, and shell fire from destroyers. There were no Kamikaze attacks that early in the war. The first Kamikaze attack occurred on October 25, 1944, two years after the Hornet had been lost in battle.Movies which are historical biographies, usually have expert advisors, whose job it is to ferret out historical script errors like that. I cannot help but wonder how that one got by without detection.Nevertheless, a good action movie which never gets boring. John Ford did a fine job with this story.

If John Ford hadn't made THE WINGS OF EAGLES, Commander Frank W. 'Spig' Wead would be best known today for the impressive collection of military-oriented stories he wrote for motion pictures, during the 30s and 40s. Among his credits are HELL DIVERS (with Wallace Beery and Clark Gable), TEST PILOT (with Gable and Spencer Tracy), DIVE BOMBER (with Errol Flynn and Fred MacMurray), and THEY WERE EXPENDABLE (for John Ford, with John Wayne and Robert Montgomery). He brought to his writing a love of flying, pride in the military, and an understanding that a 'greater good' must sometimes take precedence over personal happiness.In THE WINGS OF EAGLES, director Ford illustrates how Wead's life was every bit as interesting and dramatic as anything he wrote. A close personal friend (so much so that he even cast Ward Bond to play a thinly-disguised version of himself, named 'John Dodge', in the film), Ford was witness to many of the triumphs and tragedies of the pioneer Naval aviator/engineer's life. After completing THE SEARCHERS, Ford commemorated the tenth anniversary of his friend's passing with this sensitive, 'warts-and-all' tribute.Wead (portrayed by John Wayne, in one of his most fully realized characterizations...he even sacrificed his hairpiece, as the older Wead, for the sake of authenticity), begins the film as a typical hell-raising Ford hero, a Navy flier who loved taunting his Army counterparts (led by the terrific Kenneth Tobey), lived for the sheer joy of flying bi-planes (even when he was clueless as to HOW to fly them), and had the love of a feisty yet devoted woman (Maureen O'Hara, of course!) But, in keeping with the tone of much of the older Ford's work, Wead's life does not tie itself up into a neat, happy package, but develops into a complex near-tragedy of a man so consumed with his career that his marriage breaks down, and has his greatest dream snatched away from him when an accident cripples him. Rather than falling back on the potential aid a wife could provide, he refuses her help, relying on his Navy 'family' (represented by Dan Dailey, in one of his most popular roles) for rehabilitation. With Pearl Harbor, Wead's expertise is again called upon, and he leaves a successful career as a screenwriter to rejoin the Navy, becoming the innovator of jeep carriers...only to see his health fail him, yet again, forcing him out of the service he loved. It is a story both sad and moving, and Wayne, so often accused of being 'bigger than life' and one-dimensional in his portrayals, again demonstrates his underrated acting talent, capturing the frustration of a man who never truly achieves the ultimate triumphs he dreams of. Wead is a 'real' person, not always likable, but someone you learn to admire for his sheer determination to contribute, and not surrender to self-pity.With an excellent supporting cast (particularly Ken Curtis, as Wead's lifelong friend, John Dale Price), THE WINGS OF EAGLES may disappoint someone looking for a 'typical' war movie, but, as a film biography, is far more honest than Hollywood's 'usual' hokum. 'Spig' Wead would have loved it!

John Ford's tribute to Frank 'Spig' Wead(John Wayne) the pioneer aviator who helped develop naval air power and later turned to screen writing. The first half of the movie is played for every laugh to be had. The second half becomes sentimental and sometimes a little too dramatic in contrast with the movies earlier scenes. Well directed with top notch sets; and an all-star cast that features:Maureen O'Hara, Dan Dailey, Ken Curtis, Barry Kelley, Edmund Lowe and Ward Bond even "spoofs" Ford himself. Wayne does well running the gamut from slapstick to drama. His scenes with O'Hara always seem magical. This film is enjoyable family entertainment.