If you are looking for historical accuracy and realistic flying sequences this is not for you.

However as escapism masquerading as a history lesson then this is a very watchable movie.

The best way to enjoy this film is to revert to a prepubescent mind set ignore the (thankfully few) gooey human interest bits and let yourself go for a rip rawing seat of the pants Biggelesesk yarn.

i was so inpressed wiv this film, brilliant special effects. brilliant acting deff a 10 out of 10 film.

I watched Flyboys last night and I must say I am amazed. I agree with the last viewer that it is under-rated, as I think the story line boosts the ratings significantly.

I agree with another viewer however that this film is not completely factual, but it is definitely worth watching for those for those who aren't using the film for a history purpose.

Its a decent film, and definitely worth watching for yourself. I have rated this film on 4 and not 5 star because the use of effects on this film aren't 'superb' and not too realistic compared to some other war films. However, don't let that put you off, it is a highly entertaining film.

This is such an under rated film, being from the Air Force and not recognising RAF Halton I'm ashamed. But totally enjoyable all the way through fantastic flying sequences especially hearing the rounds rip past your ears with surround sound. Well worth any fan of aerial combat to buy.

What an enjoyable film based on factual experiances and from my point of view it is well worth watching folks.It shows a group of young Americans joining up to learn how to fly and become involved in WW1 before America enters the war in 1917.The directors and actors are only trying to give a visual image of what it was really like as far as can be achieved so long after the event. For me it has achieved that.After all it is only a representation of the facts with no gung ho "I won the war on my own" routine which normally comes from war films. Plus to those critics I ask just how many WW1 aircraft such as Botha's, Zepplins,SE5A's and Fokker Tri planes etc can be mustered at the present time to give an indication of aerial combat as it was then? The film does display an arogant brashness of the youthful pilots who believed they were entering an adventure in order to escape from their lives back home for what ever reason. Yes there were computer generated images of aircraft bouncing across the screen in abundance,but that did not detract from what was being achieved. Though I strongly believe that the critics of this film have no real conception of what they are talking about when they try and disect this film with their cutting remarks. Try Pearl harbor...that has pixels, CGI's, bouncing across the screen also.It is NOT a wasted 2 hours folks. Watch it for yourself and you can only imagine that this has to be the best attemp yet to create a visual representation for the First World war. For me. It leaves the Blue Max in the shade completly and not a single Steerman a/c was used in Flyboys. For one of the few occasions those Computer Generated Images have been used to create a wonderfully nostalgic film with a good storyline because THAT is how it happened folks.

FLYBOYS is one of those very rare things, like the silent classic WINGS or the popular George Peppard hit, THE BLUE MAX - a film about pilots in The Great War! Unlike its aforementioned predecessors, though, FLYBOYS relies heavily on CGI for its flying sequences, which can only be expected from the same producer of the Sci-Fi extravaganza, INDEPENDENCE DAY.

The film deals with the real-life Lafayette Escadrille squadron, a formation of American pilots who fought with the French air force before their home country joined the conflict. As can often happen with war films, FLYBOYS also falls into the trap of stereotyping many of the characters. For example, there is the pilot who joins to escape crippling debts, the rich boy trying to prove himself to his overbearing father, the underage recruit and the Negro battling for acceptance among his white colleagues.

For the first half an hour, action is restricted firmly on the ground as the new recruits complete their basic training under the watchful eye of their French commander, Captain Thenault - a superb but underused Jean Reno. As few combat films deal with training in this period, though, it proves quite an insight in this aspect!

Then the squadron finally becomes airborne for the first of several exciting aerial encounters with a Jasta of experienced German pilots flying the famous Fokker Dr. I Tri-plane, the one in which Manfred Von Richthofen scored his last "kills". Prominent in this squadron is a pilot known as The Black Falcon, a ruthless but deadly efficient flyer who causes more than a few problems - and casualties - for the Lafayette Escadrille. He fights brutally, likes to see the faces of his defeated victims and thinks nothing of machine-gunning grounded pilots. He is the long-standing nemesis of the Lafayette's leading ace, Cassidy, who seeks him at every opportunity.

Much of the film's budget has gone into creating the CGI effects and for the most part they are great, using new motion-capture techniques (as explained in one of the featurettes) for the aircraft and even a mighty Zeppelin airship which makes an appearance!

Problems? Well, a romance between James Franco's Rawlings and a young French woman detracts from the action and takes up a fair amount of screen time, while the CGI effects on occasion allow the planes to achieve feats which were surely impossible for such fragile craft. Furthermore, excluding the Zeppelin and a Gotha bomber the Lafayette squadron intercepts, all the German fliers seem to have the Fokker Dr. I Tri-planes. True, some pilots flew them but surprisingly the historically much more numerous Albatross Bi-planes are never seen at all and the film seems to assume that the Americans meet the same German Jasta every time they patrol the front line!

There is a small selection of special Features on the disc including an audio commentary, two brief but informative featurettes and six deleted scenes - none of which, rather disappointingly, include aerial footage.

Although certainly not the best or most realistic film about The Great War, by treating FLYBOYS as what it really is - an action picture - viewers should be entertained as long as they do not expect a compelling, true-to-life history lesson!

Ill be honest i dunno what these other guys really expected... its a film that does say from the get-go its about action packed dogfights and aerial stunts .. not realistic by any terms but still entertaining. Some decent acting and good storyline, save for the pointless romance side-story, makes this film an enjoyable one.

Usually cynical of others reviews, this time I heeded advice and borrowed it. They are right, it's total rubbish !
Please do not waste over two hours of your life on this
'Thing'.

If you want a "modern" grown-up WW1 flyer with realistic dogfights watch the above film from 1976 starring Malcolm Mcdowell which is out on DVD.If you want a film aimed at 13 year olds,with loads of C.G.I. planes whizzing about screen doing the most improbable stunts that only Von Ricthofen could dream of,buy this.I wanted tough and gritty so this wasn`t for me but kids will probably love it.

I had to stop watching this film well before it finished. What can I say, if you like war films where the Americans depict themselves as being the only reason the war was won ( any war, doesn't matter which one ), then you might enjoy this. I found it tedious and quite unrealistic, yes I know it's only a film but I thought it was bad. Hire before you buy is my advice.