THE FLIGHT OF THE PHOENIX (1965) C widescreen 149m dir: Robert Aldrich

w/James Stewart, Richard Attenborough, Peter Finch, Hardy Kruger, Ernest Borgnine, Ian Bannen, Ronald Fraser, Christian Marquand, Dan Duryea, George Kennedy

An exciting, old-fashioned adventure about a group of plane crash survivors who fight to rebuild their plane and save themselves. Director Aldrich stages a fantastic finale which generates edge-of-the-seat suspense.

From The Movie Guide: "A riveting survival film in which Stewart and his cohorts give power-packed performances as a downed pilot and passengers awaiting death in the Sahara desert. ...

"The crux of this gripping drama ultimately becomes the antagonism between pilot Towns and scientist Dorfmann, and Stewart and Kruger handle their encounters superbly --- particularly in the scene where Towns learns that Dorfmann is a designer of model airplanes. Finch is convincing as the stoic British officer, and Borgnine, Marquand, and Duryea give fine performances as stranded men. Aldrich's direction is sharp and well paced, and [Lukas] Heller's screenplay absorbing and authentic."

THE FLIGHT OF THE PHOENIX was nominated for two Oscars: Best Supporting Actor (Bannen) and Editing (Michael Luciano).