Except you missed the point. Yes, in most normal movies, you'd have a pucker factor as you cheered on the pilot to clear the cliffs. But if you watched closely during the last bomb run, you can see a whole different attitude start to come from him.
In this case, it was a suicide - the whole dialog was cute, but meaningless. He never intended to clear the cliffs. The bit about "I'll show them" didn't make any sense either. There was no point in bringing back a shot up bomber with a hung, armed bomb - HE COULDN'T HAVE LANDED ANYWHERE including land, without a 99% risk of explosion. So bringing the airplane back was pointless. And he knew it. So why not just jump out and save yourself?
Because he was already wounded, and he knew that he would be shipped stateside, and never be given an aircraft commander spot ever again - He'd be retired for his wounds (and his attitudes) to a desk job at best.
Also, you could see a totally different expression on his face when they dropped the bombs on the last run. He wasn't thrilled as usual, he looked shocked - like he finally realized that there were implications to his crew and their victims below, instead of it just all being like a game to be won.
The cliff was his doorway to the beyond, and he took it.
"War Lover" - It's in the title, and a more clear depiction of his suicide is in the original novel, according to another post on this board.
The "come on baby" dialog was probably added by the movie's producers/director to give it a more "hopeful" ending. Suicide not a being a popular subject for discussion in proximity to "war heros".
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haristas
16 years ago
I agree with the last guy... This movie isn't that well-written, McQueen's performance isn't that good, and the ending is terrible. This movie was OK up to a point, but it blew it in the end.
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CmdrCody
16 years ago
Guys...the suicide theory for Rickson would be possible except for two things.
(1) when everyone has bailed out, he's presumably talking to the airplane (himself), saying "...come on, Baby. WE'LL SHOW 'EM." Rickson intended to bring his crippled plane all of the way back to base...to show everyone who was the greatest pilot and warrior. He really thought he was bullet proof.
until...
(2) the last look at Rickson's face before he plows into the cliff. Remember? His expression went from total concentration on nursing a few more feet of altitude from the wreck to immediate realization that he wasn't going to make it.
Rickson killed himself...true...but it happened while he was pulling another of his "stunts." It was not intentional.
haristas. You're entitled to your opinion, but from a pilot's point of view, the movie is dead-on, including the script and the characters.
CmdrCody
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rockmail
15 years ago
Yup, I agree. Your viewpoint is a valid option as well.
I'd like to hear from the writer/director to see which is more accurate.
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empathica
15 years ago
I believe that the nose fuses had fan shaped props that were pinned until the bomb released. At that time a wire attached the airframe pulled the pin away and the slipstream had to spin the fuse for a known duration until it would arm. I suppose the bomb being partially hung could have released the nose fuse pin and since they couldn't close the bomb bay doors the slipstream could have armed it.
The main risk would have been from the post crash fire which would eventually ignite the bomb anyway, but not immediately or on impact.
I though that maybe he was trying to land the plane in case the wounded gunner was still alive, since he was too injured to bail out over the water. It seemed they weren't sure about his condition but had to bail out before they lost more altitude.
The flying scenes in this movie are the best part...the dialogue could have been shorter but the aerial work is excellent. Like 633 Squadron, needs more flak, less yak
But thats just me...
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BKinzeys
11 years ago
Just finished watching the movie and the fuse is in the tail. There is a shot of one of the crew trying to remove it and he reaches between the tail fins to grab the fuse. There is a fan blade attached to the fuse with multiple blades on it, not like a normal airplane prop but 10+ blades on it.
The gunner is dead. McQueen closes the guys eyes, the movie action which signifies he's dead.
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usapon
11 years ago
Yeap, he could have bailed out at low altitude or at least try to land the plane on the sea. Not sure why he didn't have a parachute, but I would think the dead (or severely injured) gunner would have been wearing one that he could use. I also had the sense that he had been hit somewhere and was bleeding out. Suicide would be the most plausible reason to crash into the highest part of the cliff (he could of at least steered it towards the lowest part).
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davidwile
11 years ago
Hey folks,
While never having read the book on which this film was based, I have seen this film perhaps ten times over the past 50 years. Every time it gets to the end of the film, I cannot help but tensing up and urging that plane to climb. I keep hoping a thermal updraft will give it enough lift for him to clear the top of the cliff and let him skim it in without making a smokehole. Every time I see it, however, I find they still have not remade the ending to suit me. Maybe next viewing?
The hung bomb depicted in the film does not mean it would have to explode on landing. Unless the bomb falls from the plane pulling the safety pin and allowing the wind vane to arm it, it really is not likely to explode. In fact, there were many thousands of unexploded bombs that were dropped during the war by both sides; the arming parts fail to work properly and the bombs can bury themselves deep in the earth without exploding.
While I may not have liked what Buzz represented as a character, every time I watch this film I will be rooting along with him as he sweet talks her saying, "Come on baby." After all these years, I am still captured by this film.
Best wishes,
Dave Wile
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CmdrCody
11 years ago
You are right about the bomb in the bomb bay. It wasn't armed. The design of the fan tailed fuse was for it to spin when the bomb was droppedl which would unscrew and arm the fuse mechanism. This device became a factor during the Falklands War with Argentine jets accurately dropping bombs into British warships yet failing to detonate. Why? Because the brave Argentine pilots flew so low that many of their bombs did not fly long enough for them to arm themselves.
However, many brave Brits died when these "dumb" bombs did go off.
CmdrCody
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