Current:Home > ScamsSpielberg and Hanks take to the World War II skies in 'Masters of the Air' -Thrive Success Strategies
Spielberg and Hanks take to the World War II skies in 'Masters of the Air'
View
Date:2025-04-12 21:11:54
In the 1990s, Steven Spielberg directed two unforgettably powerful films about World War II: Schindler's List, in 1993, and Saving Private Ryan, in 1998. Saving Private Ryan starred Tom Hanks, and Hanks and Spielberg weren't through with their obsession with World War II dramas; they were just beginning.
Teaming with Gary Goetzman, they produced two impressive, captivating HBO miniseries about World War II: Band of Brothers, in 2001, followed nine years later by The Pacific. Both miniseries did what Saving Private Ryan also had accomplished so brilliantly: They allowed the audience to experience the intensity and brutality of wartime. Not just allowed us, but forced us, in unrelenting battle sequences that gave new meaning to the phrase "you are there."
Those dramas also delivered large helpings of surprise, and of loss. We got to know, and care deeply about, their soldiers and marines — and then, without warning, many of them were taken away from us.
Masters of the Air is the newest entry in this World War II project by Spielberg, Hanks and company. It's every bit equal to, and boasts precisely the same strengths as, those previous offerings. It's presented by Apple TV+ this time, rolled out weekly after the Jan. 26 two-episode premiere. And because Masters of the Air, like Band of Brothers and The Pacific, is a limited miniseries, even the main characters are at risk of dying at any time — and some do.
Two of the primary characters share a similar nickname – a confusing gimmick that's explained early on. There's Gale "Buck" Cleven, played by Austin Butler, and John "Bucky" Egan, played by Callum Turner. Bucky had the nickname first, and gave the shorter name, "Buck," to his friend just to annoy him – until it stuck. Bucky is a loudmouth hothead; Buck is more quiet and private. But they're good friends, and great pilots.
Butler empowers Buck with the undeniable charisma of an old-fashioned movie star, like a bomber pilot-James Dean. Butler's breakout starring role was as Elvis Presley in Elvis, and here, even without the trappings of show-biz flash and glitz, he's just as magnetic.
But Butler's not carrying this story, or fighting this war, alone. Turner's Bucky matches him throughout — and so does Anthony Boyle, who plays a young navigator named Harry Crosby. And a lot more players contribute greatly: This is a large cast, doing justice to a very big story.
Masters of the Air is based on the book by Donald L. Miller. Several talented directors traded off working on various episodes, but all were adapted for TV by screenwriter John Orloff. His narrative not only follows the leading characters during World War II, but makes time, over its nine episodes, to weave in such familiar wartime narratives as the Tuskegee Airmen and the Great Escape. Lots of time is spent airborne, in one thrilling mission after another, but there also are scenes set in briefing rooms, barracks, rest and recreation spots, even German prisoner of war camps.
Masters of the Air finds drama in all those places. And it's nice to know that this miniseries, like its predecessors, is being rolled out in weekly installments. These hours of television are like the Air Force missions themselves: They're such intense experiences, it's nice to have a little time between them to reflect ... and to breathe.
veryGood! (81552)
Related
- Megan Fox's ex Brian Austin Green tells Machine Gun Kelly to 'grow up'
- Super Bowl 2024: Time, channel, halftime show, how to watch Chiefs vs. 49ers livestream
- FBI says Tennessee man wanted to 'stir up the hornet's nest' at US-Mexico border by using bombs, firearms
- Iceland volcano at it again with a third eruption in as many months
- Selena Gomez engaged to Benny Blanco after 1 year together: 'Forever begins now'
- Some of what Putin told Tucker Carlson missed the bigger picture. This fills in the gaps
- Georgia Republicans say Fani Willis inquiry isn’t a ‘witch hunt,’ but Democrats doubt good faith
- This year's NBA trade deadline seemed subdued. Here's why.
- The FTC says 'gamified' online job scams by WhatsApp and text on the rise. What to know.
- Wealth disparities by race grew during the pandemic, despite income gains, report shows
Ranking
- Bodycam footage shows high
- 2024 Lunar New Year: See photos of Asian communities celebrating around the world
- The Daily Money: How to file taxes free
- Mardi Gras 2024: What to know as Carnival season nears its rollicking end in New Orleans
- Questlove charts 50 years of SNL musical hits (and misses)
- GOP organizations sue Arizona’s top election official in latest dispute over election manual
- Super Bowl events best moments: Wu-Tang, Maluma and Vegas parties
- Elon Musk’s Neuralink moves legal home to Nevada after Delaware judge invalidates his Tesla pay deal
Recommendation
Jorge Ramos reveals his final day with 'Noticiero Univision': 'It's been quite a ride'
Mary J. Blige, Mariah Carey, Cher, Sade, Oasis and Ozzy Osbourne among Rock Hall nominees for ’24
Retired Arizona prisons boss sentenced to probation over armed 2022 standoff with police
Drug possession charge against rapper Kodak Black dismissed in Florida
Selena Gomez's "Weird Uncles" Steve Martin and Martin Short React to Her Engagement
How King Charles and Kate Middleton’s Health Challenges Are Already Changing the Royal Family
Leah Remini Reacts to New Beyoncé Wax Figure Comparisons
Montana Rep. Matt Rosendale announces Senate bid, complicating Republican effort to flip seat in 2024