Product: Flyboys [Blu-ray] (2006)
Rating: 3.0
It's okay...
When this movie was about to enter theaters, I was VERY impressed by the trailer and wanted to see it at the theaters - a rare event for me and the Mrs. (we prefer the obvious advantages & benefits of at-home rentals, although The Star Cinema Grill in Clear Lake City is a great place to see movies if you have to see one in the theater. I digress.)As mentioned, I am someone whose interest in seeing a movie is largely based on the impression I get from the trailer, plus a look at the story synopsis. I was a little disappointed that this movie did not stay at theaters long, and just figured (not surprisingly) that this kind of movie, which was once very popular, does not have the same wide audience base in a time when movies like Jackass 2 and Borat can bring in the ticketbuyers.I took a look for myself. The movie has some great dogfighting scenes with outstanding CGFX, which was what I rented it for. However, it made the same mistake Pearl Harbor did (trying to have a romantic film and a war film and a buddy film all tied together). As a result, the pacing was a little slower than I would have liked, and it probably was a factor in why the film did not do well at the box office (the war aspect may have turned off many potential female fans who might have been interested in the romantic story; though it does have a beautiful girl as the romantic interest: actress Jennifer Decker). Another factor in its disappointing revenues may be that in a time of high-tech aerial warfare marvels (I was even an aircrew member in a couple of them), there seems to be little appreciation or interest in the saga of cloth & wood & wire aircraft, which is ironic since the level of morbid interest and excitement (higher fatality rates) would be better represented by World War 1 aircraft. In fact, one of the things that the film did not really address was the danger and unpredictability of early airplanes, especially in combat, let alone just during landings and other "routine" operations.The character development was brief but sufficient, since more of it would have only slowed the pacing further without adding much in the way of interest. The fight scenes are excellent, so if your remote has a working fast-forward button, this should be an okay rent.