633 Squadron and Mosquito Squadron

Flight Journal, Jun 2004

633 Squadron and Mosquito Squadron DVD available at Tower Records; $14.99.

Along with "Battle of Britain," MGM recently released on DVD the 1964 United Artists' feature "633 Squadron" and the 1970 follow-up, which was the decidedly lowbudget Mosquito dramatization "Mosquito Squadron." Although both are presented in pristine letterbox format, neither film has aged well. The story lines are nothing more than routine melodramatic contrivances that were only marginally palatable to their original mid-1960s and '70s audiences and they are all but indigestible today.

"633 Squadron" offers a formulaic brew that is centered on a Nazi rocket-fuel factory on a Norwegian fjord (the film was actually shot in Scotland). When a Norwegian resistance fighter (George Chakiris) comes to 633 Squadron, the CO (Cliff Robertson) impresses on him the importance of the mission to destroy the factory, Robertson's war-weary character is not impressed.

"I do what they tell me to do, but it's a job, not the Holy Grail!"

When I first saw the picture back in 1964, I thought-and still think-that if the CO didn't give a damn about the mission (call it motivation), why should the audience?

What then, is left to recommend this picture? The 11 or so Mosquitos, of course, which were assembled at the film's Bovington (Dorset, UK) location! The production's Mosquitos were the last of their kind to serve with an active RAF unit, specifically, No. 3 Civil Anti-Aircraft Cooperation Unit (CAACU), which was based, until its late 1963 retirement at Exeter. Seven of the RAF unit's Mosquitos, designated TT.35s, were target-tug variants of the War's last major bomber model, the B.35. Another two were T.3s; that model was essentially a dualcontrol trainer variant of the F.2 fighter model. Only five of those recently retired Mossies, four TT.35s and a lone T.3, were flyable for the feature. Unfortunately, three of these wooden beauties were intentionally destroyed in this film's highly forgettable crash sequences.

Yes, the miniature work in this movie (and also in the later filmed "Mosquito Squadron") is atrocious: bomber variants of the Mossie stood in for the fighter-bomber rendition, and no rudder fin was visible outside the studio's process cockpit. But this is all to be endured by the strong-willed aviation buffs who have fallen in love with this gorgeous plywood speedster. all of the action was set to that wonderfully rousing Ron Goodwin musical score!

Produced four years later, "Mosquito Squadron" covers much the same territory and employs ample retread footage from the original "633 Squadron" and the 1965 V-I related feature "Operation Crossbow." Stir in a bit of bouncing-ball bomb business from "Dam Busters," and add television second banana David McCallum for seasoning. The result is, well, even harder to swallow. As it did with the eminently more satisfying "Battle of Britain" before them, MGM has released both Mosquitothemed DVDs without as much as a sceneselection card. Disc features are limited to a theatrical trailer, scene selection and subtitles in three languages.