I cried Saturday night. What began as catharsis turned to pure joy and my cheeks were wet when the credits rolled on the movie screen at the Redfield Auditorium on Water Street in Woods Hole.
“The Flyboys,” one of 18 Feature Narrative Films that were showcased at the 17th Annual Woods Hole Film Festival, stole my heart and left me hungering for more. More time that is to spend with the two 12-year-old boys, Kyle Barrett (Reiley McClendon) and Jason McIntyre (Jesse James), and other members of the cast including Jason’s uncle Ed Thomas (Dallen Gettling), that performed in the 118-minute film.
I appeased a different kind of hunger and went to dinner with my husband instead practically next door, at the Phusion Grille, a waterfront restaurant that is located at the opposite end of the historic drawbridge in Woods Hole. All during dinner my mind kept returning to the images and dialogue that Rocco De Villiers scripted when he wrote and later produced and directed what I consider one of the best family films I have seen in a long time.
As good and maybe even better than “Dead Poets Society,” “The Neverending Story,” or “Mr. Holland’s Opus,” “The Flyboys” is suitable for family entertainment and values clarification too. It is the kind of film all youngsters should see and that parents won’t want to miss. It offers excitement, suspense, humor, and tender moments that remind us that nothing can replace the memories and the close personal relationships we form when we are young.
Set in Arizona, “The Flyboys” focuses on two middle school boys who become friends because they don’t fit in with the crowd at school. Looking for something more and something good, the duo gets more adventure than they bargain for when they find themselves accidentally stowed away on a twin-engine airplane owned by the mob.
Forced to fly the plane themselves, they must confront the stuff they are made of. They form a bond of friendship that is tested again and again throughout the film under repeated perilous conditions.
Granted some of these are exaggerated and whether they are flying a plane, riding their bicycles, or running on foot down narrow alleys and streets, it is often at top speed, but these are exciting moments for the audience to see and remind those not so young of the thrills that punctuate the youthful, adventurous years that pass too quickly and leave us only memories to cling to
“The Flyboys” is a story of bravery, friendship, doing what is right even though the odds are against you, and patriotism too.
Set in Sept. 2004, the American flag plays an important role. Early in the film, when the boys are shown bicycling down a main street in their town, several flags capture the viewer’s attention. Later, when a subplot focuses on the relationship Jason has with his grandfather, a huge American Flag appears above his headboard as he lies in his bed weakened in body and spirit.
A former WWII pilot, he clings to a shadow box that displays the numerous medals he earned for bravery and for shooting down enemy aircraft. Jason’s uncle Ed sports an American flag on his leather flight jacket as well. Love of country transcends three generations in this film. Filial loyalty does too.
Loyalty is a key theme of “The Flyboys”: loyalty of mother to son, brother to brother, uncle to nephew, friend to friend, and man to country.
An anticipated fall release date, “The Flyboys” will open in some United States theaters as early as August 15. Rated PG-13, when it becomes available it would be a fine way to kick-off the school year for your teens. The scenes set in the classroom early on in the film are poignant and realistic. Kyle is the new kid in town who is trying his best to adjust in a school that already has its battle lines drawn.
What happens there depicts the difference between taking the high and not the low road and seeds the friendship that in time evolves with his classmate Jason.
Filmed in Nevada by Dark Coast Pictures, “The Flyboys” is a pleaser that all ages can enjoy. The cinematography is breathtaking, the aerial stunts and car chases are exciting, and the human relationships depicted are emotionally touching.
Winner of over a dozen awards and picked by the Woods Hole Film Festival audience as the Best Feature Drama of the 18 screened, it is a film you should enjoy.
Westwood resident Carol Ziemian teaches writing at Northeastern University. Her column appears in the Daily News Transcript on Wednesday. She can be reached at YankeePenn@aol.com.
