Heart-Warming Romance ...Stark, Sensational Drama! Thrills! Action! Adventure! ...Ripped From The Heart!

Starring: Van Johnson, Robert Walker, Tim Murdock, Don DeFore, Gordon McDonald, Phyllis Thaxter, Stephen McNally, Spencer Tracy, John R. Reilly, Robert Mitchum, Scott McKay, Donald Curtis, Louis J. Heydt

DML Rating: ★★★★★★★☆☆☆ - good

"The job'll take 'em out of the country for about three months. Tell 'em it's a secret mission. They won't know where they're going until they get there. Thats's right, volunteers. Tell them they're not to talk to anybody. That's an order!" - Lt. Col. James H. Doolittle

Why watch this? Pearl Harbor stung our country. The Doolittle raid was our response.

Plot Summary: The true story follows Lieutenant Colonel James Doolittle and his volunteer aircrews as they train for a top-secret mission to bomb Japan in the wake of the Pearl Harbor attack. The men successfully launch their B-25 bombers from an aircraft carrier, a first in history, and carry out the daring raid over Tokyo and other Japanese cities. Due to fuel shortages and bad weather, most crews crash-land in China, where pilot Ted Lawson and his crew must then endure a perilous journey to safety with the help of Chinese civilians and resistance fighters.

Dad's Preview: After Japan bombed the American naval forces moored in Hawaii's Pearl Harbor, the fence-sitting USA jumped into war against the (soon-to-be) Axis powers of Germany, Japan, and Italy. We were all in. This secret squadron of bombers would do things never done before, and the mission was very risky. They knew many of their crews would not come home. But that was the plan, and those brave pilots and crews did their jobs to defend our country. I really enjoyed how this film both documented the intense preparation required, and the real lives of the airmen, many of whom left wives at home. I really loved the film's bitter sweet ending and must say I admired Van Johnson's strong performance, as the Captain of the Ruptured Duck.

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer; Loew's Inc.