WINGS

 "Wings" was the first film to win the Academy Award for Best Picture and now, fully restored, it stands up remarkably well almost one hundred years later. It also set a standard in terms of size; this war film and tale of rivalry, on the ground and in the air, between two flyers was an epic in every sense with leads Clara Bow, Charles 'Buddy' Rogers and Richard Arlen ensuring it appealed to the largest possible audience. Certainly it was the action scenes and the flying sequences that people remember and they are magnificent but director William Wellman also handles the 'romantic' moments with great restraint and while obviously sentimental in the extreme it remains a remarkably touching picture and both Rogers and Bow are excellent. It also features an early Gary Cooper performance, displaying real star quality in only a few minutes of screen time.