Memphis Belle

The Memphis Belle is a B-17 World War II bomber, piloted by a young crew of ten men on dangerous bombing raids into Europe. Thus far they have flown 24 perilous missions, they are about to embark on mission 25 - a daylight raid on Bremen that is there most dangerous to date, and the one thing that stands between them and home. The expectations for success were high, as completing the 25th mission would earn the crew the prestigious position of being the first crew to complete all 25 missions in the 8th Airforce. Cinemagoers first saw the exploits of the Memphis Belle in a 1944 documentary by William Wyler (also available in the collection). Using this documentary as inspiration, the producers David Puttnam and Catherine Wyler embarked on a mission to produce a film that included real B-17’s and other vintage planes, as well as impressive models and authentic footage as a backdrop to the story of friendship, action and heroics. The cast includes Matthew Modine, Eric Stoltz, Tate Donovan, D. B. Sweeney, Billy Zane, Sean Astin, Harry Connick Jnr, Reed Edward Diamond, Coutney Gains and Neil Giuntoli.