In a world entranced with the output of failed auteur Ed Wood, it's not surprising that the films of a complete professional like William Wellman find themselves farther from the limelight. But for those who knew and worked with him, the man himself is harder to forget. Even now, nearly 40 years after Wellman's last film, people like Clint Eastwood and Robert Redford can do little more than shake their heads in awed memory of how cantankerous an individual he was. On one level, Wellman's pugnacity, his legendary explosive temper, made him an unlikely candidate for success in the studio system. One of the generation of directors who put the experiences of a rugged life into his work, Wellman made movies that earned 32 Oscar nominations, including four best picture nods and three for best director for himself.
Early photographs show a Wellman who was ferocious almost from birth.
I aviators that benefited from Wellman's stubbornness as well as his experience. He held up shooting the film's landmark aerial sequences for a month until the skies offered up precisely the kind of cloud formations he had in mind. For all his tough-guy exterior, emotion of any type did not trouble Wellman. Wellman also delighted in tackling tough subjects in his films. This warm and engaging film shows what he meant.