James Stewart's career in the 1960's was characterised by below average westerns, a contrast to his amazing run of diverse and ambitious films in the 50's. The Flight of the Phoenix and The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance are the two films which broke this mould.I'm not an aviation expert so I can only speak as a layman but the method in which the men escape from the desert by building a new plane out of the remains of their downed plane doesn't feel implausible, even if the man who spearheads the project designs toy planes for a living. After Frank Towns (James Stewart) and Lew Moran (Richard Attenborough) learn that Heinrich Dorfmann does not actually design real planes he makes a convincing argument that the principals of model plane design are the same and in many aspects of models require much more exacting designs as there is no pilot to fly them. Hardy Kruger is the big show stealer here as the reserved loner Heinrich Dorfmann. He doesn't conform to the rest of the group often physically separated from them nor does he appear to care what they think of him. He is someone who deals in cold, hard logic and shows little emotion throughout most of the film until he finally warms up towards the end. The intense dislike Towns has for Dorfmann is never explained. OK it is established Dorfmann gets on Towns' nerves but the contempt he has for him is clearly something more than that; in fact on my first viewing of The Flight of the Phoenix I found myself puzzled as to why he was taking such a dislike to him. Although it's never stated the dislike could be due to post war bigotry. Although Dorfmann claims to have not been involved in the war he does hold some Nazi like characteristics such as his lack of compassion for those unnecessary or hindering the survival of the greater good (the greater good!), not to mention the blonde hair and blue eyes wouldn't help Towns' perception of him.It's no secret that James Stewart was an aviation enthusiast, thus no surprise this role would have appealed to him. As a pilot during the war he bring an extra degree of levity to the role, however this is no nice guy Stewart. Frank Towns is a man with a violent temper - nor did Stewart ever appear in a movie with a face so beat up (kudos to the makeup department for all those nasty looking side effects on the character's faces.). The shot in which he threatens to kill the unknown person stealing water if they do it again as his face goes in and out of the light more than once is intimidating stuff. Likewise The Flight of the Phoenix is piloted by a superb international cast with characters whom have different levels of adjustment to surviving the wilderness. It's a surprise seeing Dan Duryea playing a softie as Standish the account; a total contrast to his other roles as a no good weasel."The little men with the slide rules and computers are going to inherit the Earth."

The Flight of the Phoenix (1965): Dir: Robert Aldrich / Cast: James Stewart, Richard Attenborough, Peter Finch, Ernest Borgnine, Ian Bannen: Overwhelming disaster suspense about taking courage and obtaining hope. The Phoenix airplane goes down in the Sahara desert within a sand storm stranding several people and injuring others. Director Robert Aldrich avoids clichés by detailing the long hours, hot sun and hopelessness. They are in a manic struggle for survival as a German passenger devises a plan to rebuild the plane out of its own parts leading to a remarkable twist. James Stewart is superb as the flight captain blaming himself for those who died. Richard Attenborough portrays the flight navigator who struggled with booze, and reaches for possible solutions for their situation. Strong supporting cast includes Peter Finch as the captain who wanders off to find help and makes a tragic return. Ernest Borgnine plays a worker who makes the fearful mistake of following the captain and his body is found later. Ian Bannen plays a less than likable crew member who only adds to this great ensemble cast. We know how this will end. Unless viewers are expecting a dead end result then it is obvious that the crew will regain flight but that doesn't detract from any suspense. Great special effects of the wreckage resulting in an excellent example of survival and maintaining union. Score: 10 / 10

THE FLIGHT OF THE PHOENIX is a classic tale of derring-do and adventure, a sort of DIRTY DOZEN style movie in which a group of stranded survivors find themselves trapped in a hostile desert and must use their wits in order to survive. It's a tale of bravery, heroism and cowardice in equal measure, as each man must come to terms with what he can do in order to survive, and it's a perfect lesson of how working as a group can always outdo individual effort.The film is well-shot by Robert Aldrich, who brings the sandy locales to life, even if the studio-shot bits are fairly obvious in comparison to the genuine location shooting. The cast is full of solid, tough guy talent: Ernest Borgnine, Ian Bannen, Ronald Fraser, Peter Finch, George Kennedy and Richard Attenborough are fine, but it's Jimmy Stewart who headlines and holds things together as the old hand. Hardy Kruger bags the most interesting role as the engineer, and how many films about engineering are this gripping? I can't think of any others if I'm honest.A word of warning: avoid the horrid remake, which just slavishly copies the plot of this film but does everything wrong. I think the most annoying thing about it was the casting director's choice to put the inferior Dennis Quaid into the Jimmy Stewart role. I mean, what were they thinking?

I saw this upon first release at least twice, and so am not unbiased due to the appeal of nostalgia. That said, if you are looking for Stewart to show his mean streak (and he had a whopper, just look at Rear Window when he talks to his fiancée!) you have come to the right movie. He's stuck with his past becoming more appealing than his present and future, and what middle-aged person has not had that feeling? The plot moves along with a satisfying pace; the work that is being accomplished to make a derelict flyable is actually shown. The characters work, and argue, and have understandable power struggles. The stakes are life and death, after all. Be prepared for one shocking reveal, shocking deaths, and a reasonable look back by at least one of the survivors, as he sees from his rescue plane just what hell he has been living in for miserable days on end.