Very watchable

Of course, it's not without faults... It was made as a propaganda film, which is occasionally very obvious - the fictional scenes in Germany perhaps being the most notable example... It deviates from the truth rather more than we'd probably accept from a biopic these days... The set of Mitchell's house and garden looks like something out of "The Wizard of Oz"... What with it being made in 1942, I did wonder if they'd been obliged to use a pre-existing, but not entirely suitable set from another production... However, all the other sets are fine and, in a few cases, even quite ambitious. So, another thought is that the house and garden set is meant to represent a sort of romanticised version of England, which needs to be protected from the Nazis at all costs... And, some of the acting by the RAF personnel does make you cringe. But, knowing they were real airmen, who, even after the Battle of Britain, were very much risking their lives every time they took off, I obviously won't have a word said against them... It's well-paced for a film of that period and, generally, the acting's very good. Though, 1940s film acting is never exactly naturalistic... David Niven is, as always, charming and Leslie Howard, whose work I'm much less familiar with, is very watchable... At some points, I was quite moved and, at others, a shiver went down my spine, which is pretty impressive when you consider that it's 71 years old and the vast majority of contemporary films completely fail to elicit an emotional response from me... Most importantly, it's very interesting and inspired me to find out about the real R J Mitchell.