The official synopsis for Wings reads like this:
World War I drama explores the devastating effects of war through the story of two men who go off to battle and the woman they both leave behind.
That pretty much sums up the film. The film is led by Charles Rogers and Richard Arlen, who are two men very much in love with one woman, Clara Bow’s Mary Preston. When the gents are shipped off to World War I to fly fighter planes, they soon realize that war takes the toll of not only lives, but habits and love as well.
I’m not sure I’ve sat through a silent film so intensely before in my life. One of the more remarkable feats this film accomplishes is its use of cinematography. You’ll notice in the first 20 minutes that the crew was trying to put together something special with the visuals. When Richard Arlen’s David is moving back and forth on a swing with his lover, the camera is literally attached to the swing, so you get the full gambit of ‘back and forth’ motion with the shot. For 1927, that’s amazing, if not revolutionary.
And what’s great is that the film doesn’t stop there.
When the movie shifts to the dogfighting in the skies, you get a mixture of miniatures, actual flying footage (with camera attached) and simple special effects. Again, for 1927, this shouldn’t be happening, but it did. It brings a lot of realism to the film, which probably helped it win the first Academy Award (and it deserved it).
Other neat things to mention include a camera that is either zooming in, or politely dollying in over a series of tables in a French restaurant. When you see this scene in action, you’ll be scratching your head wondering how in the hell they did that. I still don’t get how it worked, because I’m pretty positive the lenses weren’t sophisticated enough to span over 5-6 table tops in a single motion. Again, just amazing to watch.
Anyway, the movie is great. It’s a treat to watch, and it’s a little over two-hours in length. It’s got a good, balanced love story mixed with some intense World War I action. The scope of the film had to be huge for the day, and you’ll understand that once you see it. There is an intermission that allows you to go get popcorn or tinkle, so expect it.
Great movie, though.
As for the HD upgrade, this was impressive. While there isn’t a chance in a hell that this picture is going to be completely void of imperfections (you’ll see scratches and artifacts through out), the cleaning job that was done with Wings focused one some good things. You’ll get a lot of details in the faces of the actors, more than there probably was when it was originally shot and released. You’ll have plenty of good details in the background, especially when the movie shifts over to fighting. One thing to note, the movie goes from sepia tone to black and white halfway through, and then back again. It’s a bit jarring, but it’s understandable considering the film is just a decade shy of 100 years old.
One of the biggest improvements for this release is the phenomenal soundtrack that has been redone and mastered into DTS-HD. It’s far and away better than the original soundtrack, plus it helps with the sound effects onscreen. It’s impressive and truly a gift for the ears. The film does give you the option to listen to the film in either the original or new music, so purists won’t be disappointed. Excellent job on the soundtrack, though.
Finally, as for features, here’s what you’re looking at:
– Wings: Grandeur in the Sky
– Dogfight!
– Restoring the Power and Beauty of Wings
All the features are in HD, and I’m impressed they could put together material to make special features. It’s not like they had this planned in 1927 for the future. Anyway, very solid stuff that accompany a very solid Blu-ray release.