The Dam Busters is one of the best British World War II movies. It tells the true story of the bouncing bomb; its development, the specialist training of the pilots who would deploy it and ultimately its use by the RAF raid during a dangerous mission to destroy the Ruhr Dams in Germany in 1943, which in turn would knock out a significant source of hydro electrical power used by the enemy. The story is told via two central characters in the story, namely the physicist who designed the bomb, Dr. Barnes Wallis and the man who led the 617 Squadron who deployed them, Wing Commander Guy Gibson. It takes a slightly differing route to many war films of its time in that its criticisms were aimed mainly at some of the British top brass, as opposed to the Germans who never actually appear in the film at any point beyond being a distant enemy. So the main obstacle for the most part is bureaucracy at home and it's only in the final third where the obstacle switches to the German enemy, in a very exciting re-enactment of the famous mission. This latter sequence is very well paced and is genuinely thrilling. Fair enough, the special effects of the water explosions look very ropey nowadays but aside from that, it's masterfully handled stuff. Michael Redgrave and Richard Todd are excellent as respectively Wallis and Gibson, in performances that capture the frustration, elation and ultimate sadness of their journey. The film is topped off with a very stirring theme tune that does fine justice to the material. All-in-all, this remains one of the great war movies.
Review of The Dam Busters
