One of Our Aircraft Is Missing

"1942's first blast of screen dynamite"

1942 1h 42m EN

👍

6.6

SOLID

★6.6TMDB · 46

WarDrama

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

During a raid on Germany, a British bomber crew is forced to bail out after their plane is damaged. They land in Holland, where they're aided by Dutch civilians.

“1942's first blast of screen dynamite”

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Where to watch · US

Cast

Godfrey Tearle
Sir George Corbett, Rear Gunner in B for Bertie
Eric Portman
Tom Earnshaw, Copilot in B for Bertie
Hugh Williams
Frank Shelley, Observer / Navigator in B for Bertie
Bernard Miles
Geoff Hickman, Front Gunner in B for Bertie
Hugh Burden
John Glyn Haggard, Pilot in B for Bertie
Peter Ustinov
The Priest
Googie Withers
Jo de Vries
Pamela Brown
Els Meertens

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Emeric Pressburger
Writers: Michael Powell, Emeric Pressburger
Languages: German, Latin, French, English, Dutch
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

MONEY

Did you know

Shot for just $0.1M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Grossed $1M — a 12.8× return. The kind of profit studios chase for a decade.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

ERA

Did you know

84 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

Dialogue crosses 5 languages: German, Latin, French, English, Dutch.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Emeric Pressburger, shot by Ronald Neame. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

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

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Godfrey Tearle and Eric Portman and Hugh Williams carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "1942's first blast of screen dynamite".

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Emeric Pressburger directs. Ronald Neame behind the camera. David Lean cuts. Made its budget back several times over at the box office. Produced in United Kingdom. Dialogue in German, Latin, French, English, Dutch.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Shot for just $0.1M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.
2Grossed $1M — a 12.8× return. The kind of profit studios chase for a decade.
384 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
4Dialogue crosses 5 languages: German, Latin, French, English, Dutch.
5Directed by Emeric Pressburger, shot by Ronald Neame. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
6Editor David Lean shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
7Godfrey Tearle and Eric Portman and Hugh Williams carry the top of the cast.
8Marketing tagline: "1942's first blast of screen dynamite".
9IMDB entry: tt0035153 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
10Only 46 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

The technical file

Cinematography: Ronald Neame
Editing: David Lean
Runtime: 102 min · 1h 42m
Status: Released
Budget: $75,000
Box office: $957,878
Return: 1277% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): NR
IMDB: One of Our Aircraft Is Missing (1942)

Awards

National Board of Review: Top Ten Films

Individual records documented via Wikidata; the summary above may count more.

Also by

Emeric Pressburger

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2022-06-19
★ 7/10
Messrs. Powell & Pressburger have assembled a really good cast here for this tale of a WWII bomber crew whose plane comes down in the Netherlands after a raid. Five out of the six land together, where they encounter some young Dutch children who lead them to their local school mistress. Initially suspicious of their new guests, the Dutch civilians soon determine to repatriate them - and to help find their missing colleague; despite the dangers from the ever present Nazis. There isn't really a standout performance here, it is - as would have been true at the time - a team effort with each performing to their strengths and succumbing to their weaknesses as their escape plans take more shape, putting everyone at risk. The emphasis here is more on the attitudes and courage of the Hollanders. They are proactive in getting these pilots home, they take risks and the direction of this film draws us into these dangers. Pamela Brown is super as the clever and devious "Els Meertens" who manages, deftly, to play a very dangerous game with the German soldiers as tries to get them, as she had before and will do again, to safety. There are a few lovely contributing performances from a very young Peter Ustinov as a rather stoic priest, Googie Withers and an entertaining Hay Petrie as the Burgomaster. It was made in the middle of the Second World war, so if course it has a certain propagandist element to it. That isn't too blatant, though. There is some humour, a genuine sense of camaraderie and by the conclusion, you cannot fail to think that God must be on the side of the British.

Production companies