JLRVancouver Typical of most war time films, "The First of the Few" (released as "Spitfire" in America) served both as entertainment and 'morale-building' propaganda and should be viewed (and judged) accordingly. Both Leslie Howard and David Niven left Hollywood to return to their native England in the hope of aiding the war effort and Howard produced, directed, and starred in this biopic of R. J. Mitchell, the aviation engineer who designed the famous Supermarine Spitfire fighter. Mitchell died of cancer in 1937, so the story is told by his test pilot, now RAF Squadron Leader, Geoffrey Crisp (David Niven) - a fictional character who is a composite stand-in for the numerous pilots who flew Mitchell's designs in the decade preceding the war. The film takes a few liberties with the facts for dramatic effect (Mitchell never met Willy Messerschmitt) and his christening of the new plane as the "Spitfire" is much more heroic than the actual event "...sort of bloody silly name". More significantly, Mitchell's actual health issues are not stated, rather, he is portrayed as a martyr, working himself to death on the plane he believes will be needed to keep the Nazis at bay. The film is a somewhat contrived at times, especially the simplistic portrayals of Mitchell's corporate backers, the imaginary dinner scene where the Germans blurt out their future plans for world subjugation, and some of Howard's purplish dialogue about birds and planes, but despite these weaknesses, the film remains an interesting war-time biopic of a man who may have been instrumental in the victory of the RAF over the Luftwaffe in 1940. The somewhat slow moving story is highlighted by some excellent flying scenes, both of the iconic RAF fighter and its antecedents, the lovely Supermarine Schneider Trophy racing seaplanes. The film is also famous for being the last film Howard made before his tragic death over the Bay of Biscay, ironically at the hands of the Luftwaffe.

blanche-2 Leslie Howard's last film was one that he starred in, produced, and directed, in England called The First of the Few; in the U.S. called Spitfire. The British title relates to Winston Churchill's words: "Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few."It is the story of R.J. Mitchell, who designed the Spitfire, a plane which helped win the Battle of Britain.The Spitfire had several advantages. It was difficult to shoot down since the planes flew higher and faster than what the Germans had. Also, it was easy for the Spitfire to refuel since they were on home ground, whereas the Germans had to return to Germany to refuel. In part, it was designed by Mitchell due to his concern that the British military could not stand up to the German military. Mitchell's brilliance was in combining elements that had been invented earlier to make one fabulous plane. He had some false starts, but he ultimately succeeded. In 1931, his design, S.6B, won the Scheider Trophy Competition and started things off. The plane later broke the world speed record.We don't learn too much about Mitchell himself. He was dedicated to his work to the point of exhaustion, so it's doubtful he had a hot social life. Unlike Howard's upper class, even-tempered Mitchell, the real Mitchell was athletic, lower class, and easily angered. Howard made his acting choices deliberately as Mitchell's family spent a lot of time on the set.Howard costars with David Niven as his pilot, who provided some lighter moments. And if you like that sort of thing, there is a lot of aerial footage.Mitchell died of rectal cancer in 1937 at the age of 42, so he didn't see all of his plane's success. Howard died in 1943 on KLM Royal Dutch Airlines/BOAC Flight 777, which was shot down over the Bay of Biscay by the Luftwaffe as the plane flew from Lisbon to the UK. He was 50.This is a strong propaganda film, well acted and well directed. It was filmed at an active fighter station, Ibsley, and the extras were real Battle of Britain fliers, and the film also showed the real people working on the plane.Anyone interested in Mitchell, his son wrote two books: R.J. Mitchell: World Famous Aircraft Designer, and R.J.Mitchell: Schooldays to Spitfire.As an aside, because this was a propaganda film, Niven was released from his MGM contract in exchange for distribution rights. When Samuel Goldwyn saw the film, he realized Niven was in a supporting role and re-edited the movie, cutting 40 minutes.This is a similar story to what happened to Tyrone Power when MGM borrowed him for Marie Antoinette. When Zanuck saw that Power played a supporting role, he never lent him out again, and Power was offered some huge films as in 1939 he moved into the top 10 box office stars. I think Niven was luckier, though he and Goldwyn fought for years.

mklmjdrake One of the good ones! Very simple biopic that inspires and entertains. Great cast with David Niven and Leslie Howard (who also produced and directed). It will probably never end up on a 100-best list of films of all time. But it does not fail to deliver heart, spirit and all around good feelings. It is a reminder of nationalism which seems to have disappeared in this country. It was made in the days when it was not offensive to be proud of your country and the men and women who helped make it great. It is a reminder of the evil men in our world history and those who fought against them.The studio sets are almost comical... you can hear the echo in the sound recording! The special effects are not special at all. The dialogue is even corny in some scenes. But none of that matters because the story is more important. It's a story of a man and his love of country and his disdain for tyranny. His perseverance is inspirational. His example is uncommon. And the support of his wife is just as stirring. RJ Mitchell is the spit and fire!

bkoganbing The development of the Spitfire fighter plane by the Royal Air Force is considered a crucial factor in winning the Battle of Britain in that crisis year of 1941. It could fly faster and higher than the best German fighters and of course being right at home base it had the advantage of being able to instantly refuel. Unless a German pilot could shoot one down, a tie was always to the defenders because the German eventually had to return home for fuel. Though he didn't live to see it, credit for the design of the Spitfire and a share of winning the Battle of Britain goes to Reginald J. Mitchell who had been dead four years before the Battle of Britain. This film is a tribute to him as realized by Producer/Director/Star Leslie Howard. The problem one encounters in biographical films of this sort occurs when the subject lead colorless lives. We don't get that much of Mitchell here I suspect because outside of designing aircraft he probably was a pretty dull fellow. But Howard and David Niven who played his friend and test pilot are capable players and there's enough aerial footage to satisfy any buff.Howard's seminal moment in the film occurs when he goes to Germany to view their nascent airplane industry and realizes just who is the target of all these new warplanes. He comes back and through sheer persistence and conviction persuades the Air Ministry and the Baldwin government to start the development of a better fighter plane.Curiously enough the American aviator hero Charles Lindbergh got the same treatment from the Germans and came back to America with a message of defeatism. Interesting the different reactions when aviation people start talking shop.Had Leslie Howard not died ironically enough a battlefield casualty as the airliner he was on shot down in 1943 in the Bay of Biscay, The First of the Few might have been the beginning of a great career behind the camera. Probably would have extended into British television as well as the cinema.Still this film is a fine farewell and a tribute to two British patriots, Leslie Howard and Reginald J. Mitchell.