Best movie of this year hands down!

Wow! Such a good movie.

There is, somehow, an interesting story here, as well as some good acting. There are also some good scenes

It's easily one of the freshest, sharpest and most enjoyable films of this year.

Leslie Howard produced, directed, and starred in Spitfire, the last film before his death in 1943. In the film, he plays real-life plane architect R.J. Mitchell, famous for designing airplanes in the 1920s. His buddy, played by David Niven, flies the airplanes to show off Leslie Howard's talent as well as his own piloting skills. Together, the friends take a vacation in Germany, and once they see the writing on the wall for WW2, they start to design a "spitfire" fighter plane for the British air force. Most of the actors in the film, besides the leads and their love interests, are extras, actual fighter pilots from WWII. Most of the flight scenes is actual footage from the war, too. The characters aren't particularly three-dimensional, with the focus of the screenplay on the technical details, so Leslie basically comes across as an unflawed workaholic, and Niven basically comes across as a womanizing jokester. If you're interested in the backstage preparation before the war, or if your favorite facet of the armed forces is the air force, you'll probably find this film very interesting.

Directed by Leslie Howard(who also played Mitchell)The First Of The Few tells his story from an idea he had one day watching the birds to the planes flying in the war.Made in 1942 a year after the Spifires helped win The Battle of Britain this is an uplifting film,made I imagine for the sole purpose of building troop morale. R.J Mitchell(Leslie Howard)is a plane designer who's designs were deemed too revolutionary for the time.Along with his old friend Geoffrey Crisp(David Niven)who was a pilot in the First World War he sets out to build the plane.Geoffrey backs him up 100 percent and is the test pilot for Mitchell's aircraft.However tragedy is just around the corner when (after working flat out without sleeping or eating)Mitchell feels unwell and consults a Dr who tells him if he does not stop he will die in just a year.Will Mitchell ignore the advice or heed it?well if you've read about him you will know,if you don't know the story then watch this wonderful film.David and Leslie have a great chemistry and play their parts well,in this brilliant film about an important part of British history.

Leslie Howard is R. J. Mitchell, the man who. with the help of his friend (David Niven) and the support of his wife (Rosamund John), designed the speedy monoplanes that won the Schneider Trophy in the 1920s and who later designed the superb British fighter, the Spitfire.In a modern biography, Mitchell would have to be beset by inner demons, which he would then have to conquer in order to succeed -- maybe booze, mental illness, satyriasis, or the heartbreak of eczema. But in 1942, the story couldn't be fitted into the usual Procrustean bed.Mitchell's only problem is that he discovers Germany's desire to conquer the known world and works himself to death inventing the airplane that will contribute to the failure of their plans.At one point, his doctor informs him with brutal candor that he either must give up his work and take a long vacation -- at least a year -- or he has only a few months left to live. (Oh, how I wish some doctor had told ME that. Or given me some other set of Aesculapian orders that would be easy to follow -- "Stay in bed for a year and drink plenty of fluids.") But the doctor is barking up the wrong tree. Mitchell's problem is that he has a Calvinist "calling." In designed the Spitfire he is fulfilling God's plan. The first mate of the Pequod, Starbuck, tried to tell Captain Ahab about all this in "Moby Dick." It was one thing to be a zealous whaler. By providing society with whale oil and ambergris they were doing a service to mankind and carrying out God's will, but Ahab's obsession with the White Whale was personal, and therefore blasphemous. No such problem with Mitchell and the Spitfire.And what an airplane Mitchell came up with! Oh, it had its weaknesses, couldn't dive abruptly, but when it came to appearances the Spitfire was more than a match for its adversary, the Bf 109. The thin wings were long, wide, and elliptical, like a bird's soaring. And its sleek nose ended in a bullet-shaped spinner. And it was a beauty to fly, quick and nimble, reluctant to stall out. Unlike many fighters of World War II its design suggested not so much power as elegance and grace.You don't actually get to learn much about the airplane though. You get to learn a lot about R. J. Mitchell, his friends, and his devotion to a cause. It's more of a flag waver than a broad topical study. How could it be otherwise in a 1942 British war movie? Leslie Howard, who looked and acted so English, was of Hungarian ancestry. He had a hand in every department of this film. He directed it himself, and it was his last film effort. His plane was lost over the sea a short time later.The movie must have meant a lot to wartime audiences. It could profitably be shown today in many high school and college classes because today's students tend to be so ahistorical that they get everything mixed up. When Barbara Tuchman ("The Guns of August") gave a guest lecture at a large Midwestern university on the causes of World War I, a student congratulated her for enlightening him. He'd always wondered why the other was called World War II.

'The First of the Few' relates the story of the development of the Supermarine Spitfire by R.J.Mitchell, although as almost anyone who knows anything about the 'Battle of Britain' will tell you, around 70% of the Royal Air Force's front line fighters were Hawker Hurricanes. Slower, but a more stable and resilient gun platform than the Spitfire. In the Battle of Britain (fought in the summer of 1940) the Royal Air Force deployed the Hurricanes against bombers, while the more agile Spitfires engaged their fighter escorts. The Hurricane was designed by Sydney Camm (1893-1966) who designed many post-war jet aircraft including the Hawker Hunter - maybe someone should make a film of his life. An uncle of mine was an ace with 6 kills to his credit, flying a Hurricane from Malta. His aircraft was short down by British anti-aircraft fire on 29-12-1941. No, there's nothing new about friendly fire. William Walton's music also makes a great contribution to the film, and is now rightly (popular as the 'Spitfire Prelude and Fugue')in the concert hall.