Wings

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Wings

PG-13

1927

2h 22m

War

History

Drama

Action

Romance

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

94%

Tomatometer

62 Reviews

79%

Popcornmeter

2,500+ Ratings

Wings is the first film to win the Academy Award® for Best Picture. Featuring a meticulous restoration and a newly recorded soundtrack based on the original score. This timeless story of love and loss follows two men who go to war and the girl they leave behind. Popular Twenties "It" girl Clara Bow stars with Richard Arlen, Charles "Buddy" Rogers and Gary Cooper in a legendary cameo appearance.

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Critics Consensus

Subsequent war epics may have borrowed heavily from the original Best Picture winner, but they've all lacked Clara Bow's luminous screen presence and William Wellman's deft direction.

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Wilella Waldorf

New York Post

02/10/2021

A great deal of sentimental and weepy material is thrust into the tale here and there, along with long stretches of what may be termed for want of a better designation, "just war."

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Bernice Foy

Fort Worth Star-Telegram/DFW.com

02/09/2021

Charles Rogers and Richard Arlen share honors as stars, with Clara Row as the feminine lead. While the picture is rather long, it holds the interest.

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Edwin Schallert

Los Angeles Times

02/09/2021

Wings is unquestionably the dazzle and pyrotechnics of the screen fulfilled in a new sphere, and teems with twentieth century timeliness.

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David Nusair

Reel Film Reviews

Jan 31

2.5/4

...a watchable yet palpably padded-out war picture...

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Pare Lorentz

Judge

10/26/2023

You will get a real feeling of flying when you see Wings... Because of this and because it has the best photography I have ever seen in an American motion picture, Wings ranks as a superior movie.

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Mark Johnson

Awards Daily

06/27/2023

Full of innovative flying scenes, dogfights, strung-out love triangles, and set against the backdrop of World War I, Wings still holds up well nearly a century later.

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Christian K

@ckacar 3d

Decent technical filmmaking with miniatures primarily used for the combat sequences. The lead actress, Clara Bow, gave a very striking and expressive performance. Its a pretty weak portrayal of a wartime love story, overall. The music really got to me though, 140 minutes is too long to listen to the same 1 minute music loop for the entire duration, so I had to watch the 2nd half on mute.

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Vicky T

Sep 4

I just watched this on TCM. PAramount restored it with a score, and the music was good. Also cool to see young Gary Cooper

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mark g

@Mark_Alan_G. Sep 4

As a US History teacher and historian it actually took me many many years before seeing this film. It was made in 1927, so comparison to modern films is not possible. Silent films were unique and not made for everyone. However, the filmmaking here is incredible. This was a massive undertaking, with incredible shots and footage, stuff that would cost hundreds of millions to make today. The strength of the film is obviously the action and war scenes, beautiful and captivating. The one thing that I found curious was how Clara Bow was really billed as the star, she actually has a minor supporting role.

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Jace T

@CineChamber Aug 16

I am actually quite impressed and shocked how good this movie is. It is crazy that this movie is nearly 100 years old. We sure have come a long way in film making since then. There are some beautifully shot scenes on display here. Some of the run time is a little long for things, but you must forgive it for the age of this film. The only thing that really wore on me was the same song being played over and over for the entire 2.5 hour run time, even during times when it should not be feeling as upbeat as the music gives. The story being told here is actually a beautiful and tragic one. A true masterpiece for the era.

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Steve M.

@Steve32819 May 11

Great movie with astounding effects that stand up even today.

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Oliver L

08/29/2024

Revolutionary beauty. Almost 100 years old and it looks amazing. The beauty to show the cruelty of war, with comedy, love and drama makes the 2 hours 20 minutes few. And any fram can be used as a real photo of the war. Oscar deserved.

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William A. Wellman

Director

Harry D'Abbadie D'Arrast

Director

Clara Bow

Mary Preston

Charles "Buddy" Rogers

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Richard Arlen

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Synopsis

Wings is the first film to win the Academy Award® for Best Picture. Featuring a meticulous restoration and a newly recorded soundtrack based on the original score. This timeless story of love and loss follows two men who go to war and the girl they leave behind. Popular Twenties "It" girl Clara Bow stars with Richard Arlen, Charles "Buddy" Rogers and Gary Cooper in a legendary cameo appearance.

Director: William A. Wellman, Harry D'Abbadie D'Arrast
Producer: Kevin Brownlow, Jesse L. Lasky, Adolph Zukor
Screenwriter: John Monk Saunders, Hope Loring, Louis D. Lighton, Julian Johnson
Production Co: Paramount
Rating: PG-13 (War Violence)
Genre: War, History, Drama, Action, Romance
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jan 15, 1927, Original
Rerelease Date (Theaters): May 16, 2012
Release Date (Streaming): Feb 20, 2012
Runtime: 2h 22m

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