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Previously Played

WINGS

  • FRI 1:00 4:00 7:00
    SAT/SUN 1:00 7:00

$7 Member  $12.50 Regular

Part of the seriesWELLMAN Festival

See the complete schedule of films

Friday’s 7:00 show of WINGS introduced by William Wellman, Jr., son of the director. Following the screening, Mr. Wellman will sign copies of his book The Man and His Wings, on sale at concession. Mr. Wellman will appear at additional shows opening weekend. Showtimes/dates TBA.


Saturday’s 7:00 show introduced by Oscar-winning sound designer Ben Burtt (E.T., Star Wars, Raiders of the Lost Ark), who recreated the sound effects for this restoration, with Q&A following the movie.

(1927) “It Girl” Clara Bow loves Buddy Rogers, but Buddy — and buddy Richard Arlen — loves planes; all get their fill when the US of A enters WWI. The very first Best Picture Academy Award-winner (then called “Most Outstanding Production”) is a super-spectacle, with hair-raising aerial footage matched with massive battle recreations — its authenticity guaranteed by real-life Great War flyboy vets Wellman, Arlen, and screenwriter John Monk Saunders — and a star-making cameo by Gary Cooper. This all-new 4K digital (DCP) restoration, created to help celebrate the 100th anniversary of Paramount Pictures, incorporates the film’s original 1927 score by John Stepan Zamecnik, color tinting (and a re-creation of its “Handschiegl” color effects, originally stenciled right onto the prints), and sound effects authentically re-created by Oscar-winning sound designer Ben Burtt (E.T., Star Wars, Raiders of the Lost Ark, etc., etc.). Restored by Paramount Pictures with support from the Academy Film Archive. Special thanks to The Film Foundation.

REVIEWS

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"STUNNINGLY RESTORED!"
– Lou Lumenick, New York Post

“A masterpiece of the silent cinema and Wellman's first great work, an epic World War One aviation drama with dazzling cinematography and stunts, documentary-like realism, dynamic direction, and a warm, engaging cast. It stands as a pioneering motion picture achievement and a prototypical adventure movie, retaining its potency over 70 years after its release.”
– John Andrew Gallagher & Frank Thompson

“Wellman hurls his camera around the vast battlefield with exhilarating abandon... His epic handling of the big drive is overwhelming, and the superimposition of thousands of men marching into a horizon where their destruction is pictured in split screen is a moment worthy of Abel Gance’s J’Accuse.”
– Kevin Brownlow

“A spectacular tribute to the American flyers of World War I, born of Wellman's and John Monk Saunders' own experiences with the Lafayette Flying Corps, it's distinguished by matchless aerial photography, logistically-detailed battle scenes and dogfights, and a unique blend of 'European' directorial touches with Hollywood pace.”
– Time Out (London)

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