The First of the Few

"The thrilling human story behind the plane that licked the Luftwaffe!"

1942 1h 58m EN

👍

6.7

SOLID

★6.7TMDB · 42

WarDrama

Synopsis

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This 1942 fictionalized biopic chronicles the true story of how two of the most remarkable men in aviation history - visionary Spitfire designer R.J. Mitchell and his test pilot Geoffrey Crisp - designed a streamlined monoplane that led to the development of the Spitfire.

“The thrilling human story behind the plane that licked the Luftwaffe!”

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Cast

Leslie Howard
R.J. Mitchell
David Niven
Geoffrey Crisp
Rosamund John
Diana Mitchell
Roland Culver
Commander Bride
Anne Firth
Miss Harper
David Horne
Mr. Higgins
J.H. Roberts
Sir Robert McLean
Derrick De Marney
Squadron Leader Jefferson

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Leslie Howard
Writers: Henry C. James, Katherine Strueby, Miles Malleson
Languages: English, German, Italian
Countries: United Kingdom

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

ERA

Did you know

84 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

Dialogue crosses 3 languages: English, German, Italian.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Leslie Howard, shot by Georges Périnal. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by William Walton. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Douglas Myers shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Leslie Howard and David Niven and Rosamund John carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "The thrilling human story behind the plane that licked the Luftwaffe!".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0034734 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Leslie Howard directs. Georges Périnal behind the camera. William Walton scores. Douglas Myers cuts. Produced in United Kingdom. Dialogue in English, German, Italian.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

184 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
2Dialogue crosses 3 languages: English, German, Italian.
3Directed by Leslie Howard, shot by Georges Périnal. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by William Walton. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Douglas Myers shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Leslie Howard and David Niven and Rosamund John carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "The thrilling human story behind the plane that licked the Luftwaffe!".
8IMDB entry: tt0034734 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Only 42 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

The technical file

Cinematography: Georges Périnal
Original score: William Walton
Editing: Douglas Myers
Runtime: 118 min · 1h 58m
Status: Released
Original language: EN
Certification (US): G
IMDB: The First of the Few (1942)

Also by

Leslie Howard

Trailers & featurettes

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Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2024-06-03
★ 7/10
Leslie Howard had a hand in just about everything here, and has delivered quite a poignant story of a dedicated and visionary man who might just have a legitimate claim to really have helped stave off the Nazis. He portrays R.J. Mitchell, a man whose vision was as an aircraft designer. We were still using bi-planes at the time and though the engineering of flight was now well established, he was determined to push the boundaries. His bosses at British firm SuperMarine were nervous about the investments - especially when he came up with a plan for the aircraft equivalent of a onesie. He sticks to his guns though, and next thing he, with the help of his accomplished pilot "Geoffrey Crisp" (David Niven), is winning the Schneider Trophy and pushing speed records from 200+ mph to 400+ mph. All of this development is coming at a time when the Germans are ignoring the Versailles treaty and rearming. There are plenty of Britons pushing for a similar programme, especially the vocal Lady Lucy Houston (Toni Edgar-Bruce) who donates the not inconsiderable sum of £100,000 so he can work with Rolls-Royce to take it's embryonic "Merlin" engine and fit it to a nimble fighter aircraft - the "Spitfire". Though it is Howard who takes centre stage, I think it's actually Niven who works the best here as the enthusiastic pilot who manages to motivate his friend whilst helping to manage his increasingly obsessive behaviour alongside wife Diana (Rosamund John). There's a sense of excitement as their peacetime racing enterprises illustrate the pre-eminence of this British team and then a sense of accruing menace as they realise those across the channel were playing nice whilst looking to Hermann Goering to fund an expansive programme of military Messerschmidt production. It does run a little to sentiment towards the end, but there is ample action, a bit of mischief and a lively score from William Walton make for a slightly rose-tinted but entertaining and sometimes quite informative watch.

Production companies