1. Wings (1927)

Director: William A. Wellman

Starring: Clara Bow, Charles "Buddy" Rogers, Richard Arlen, Gary Cooper

Other Oscar Wins: Best Effects

Other Oscar Nominations: N/A

Favourite Line: "All set?" "O.K.!"

Richard Arlen and Charles "Buddy" Rogers in Wings.

Wow. What a stunning picture. This is an incredible feat of dramatic and compelling storytelling. The story is about two World War One fighter pilots who are both in love with the same girl, and also of the girl next door who joins the Women's Motor Corp to be closer to the man she loves, but he does not notice her. Wings is a beautiful film about camaraderie, romance, and war, with an ending that I can honestly say I didn't see coming, and left me a blubbering, sobbing mess.

The movie features some fantastic acting all around, but two particularly impressive roles were had by Clara Bow as Mary Preston and Charles Rogers as Jack Powell. Clara Bow is so fascinating to watch, and just draws you in whenever she is on screen. Charles "Buddy" Rogers gives the most moving performance of the film, which is even more impressive considering that he had to do all his own flying, and was sick after every take in the air.

Artwork by Olly Moss

The special effects, which rightfully won their own Oscar, are very impressive. All the flying and battle scenes are absolutely awe inspiring. When you think about how difficult it would be to film this, and when you consider that those planes are really in the air with the actors, and that it cost about $2 million to make (which was unheard of at the time), it's almost hard to believe the film was even made at all.

A few interesting facts about Wings, not only is it the first winner of the Academy Award for Best Picture, it also contains the first onscreen kiss between two men. The fires on the crashing planes in the battle sequences are in colour, which means they would have to be individually hand-painted. Wings  is also the film that gave Gary Cooper his start. Cooper is often listed as one of the stars of the film, which is quite the feat, considering he is only on screen for a minute and a half before his character is killed. My final fun fact is that the third star of the film, Richard Arlen, was in fact a real pilot with the Royal Canadian Flying Corps in WWI, although he never actually saw combat.

All in all, Wings is an absolutely brilliant picture, which I'm sure I'll watch again, and I would highly recommend it.