Eagles Over London
Encyclopedia
Eagles Over London, also known as Battle Squadron and Battle Command , is a 1969 Italian "macaroni combat
" war film
directed by Enzo G. Castellari
.
, he asked the producers what their next film would be. They replied a war epic about the Battle of Britain
. Enzo thought that was a great idea but the producers had their sights on Alberto De Martino
directing. The producers stipulated that stock footage of the actual Battle of Britain needed to be used in the film and that it should be used in a split-screen method. They asked Enzo if he would direct the special effects sequences and cut it with the stock footage using a split-screen method. Enzo had never heard of "split screen" so he was shown the American films The Thomas Crown Affair
and the The Boston Strangler
. He shot the effects sequences and mixed it using a triple split screen method. An example is having a British plane shoot on the left side, having a Nazi plane getting hit on the right side, and having stock footage in the middle. When shown this split-screen footage, the producers were so impressed they decided to have Enzo direct the entire picture. After this, Enzo sat down with a writing partner for a week to rewrite the overlong script to make it more action-orientated and less of a "soap opera".
It should be noted that the film is entirely fictional and historically inaccurate. For instance, the RAF never shot down 94 German planes in one day; London was never "blitzed" in one sortie by "1,000 planes"; and the RAF Control Centre was never attacked in any way. It is also interesting to note that the director uses Me-109s (or near-replicas of them) as RAF "Spitfires", and Spitfires as Luftwaffe "Me-109s". There are also interesting fictional "bombers" that are supposed to be He-111s.
The Film is out on Region 2 on the 11 January.
. Enzo said that he and his wife went to go see "From Hell to Victory" in theatres and it made him extremely upset that footage he shot was reused in film.
Euro War
Macaroni Combat, also known as Macaroni War or Euro War films, is a nickname for a broad sub-genre of war film that emerged in the mid-1960s, so named because most were produced and directed by European co-productions notably Italians....
" war film
War film
War films are a film genre concerned with warfare, usually about naval, air or land battles, sometimes focusing instead on prisoners of war, covert operations, military training or other related subjects. At times war films focus on daily military or civilian life in wartime without depicting battles...
directed by Enzo G. Castellari
Enzo G. Castellari
Enzo G. Castellari is an Italian film director. He became famous during the 1960s by directing several spaghetti westerns with such titles as Go Kill and Come Back Enzo G. Castellari (born July 29, 1938) is an Italian film director. He became famous during the 1960s by directing several spaghetti...
.
Plot
During World War II at the height of the Battle of Britain, British military officers are in pursuit of a merciless team of Nazi saboteurs. They searched though war-ravaged London but the Nazis eluded them. Finally, the British caught up with the Germans in a final battle at the RAF Control Centre.Production
When Enzo G. Castellari finished the film Kill Them All and Come Back AloneGo Kill Everybody and Come Back Alone
Kill Them All and Come Back Alone is a 1968 Italian motion picture directed by Enzo G. Castellari. The movie is a western and was written by Castellari and Tito Carpi. It stars U.S...
, he asked the producers what their next film would be. They replied a war epic about the Battle of Britain
Battle of Britain
The Battle of Britain is the name given to the World War II air campaign waged by the German Air Force against the United Kingdom during the summer and autumn of 1940...
. Enzo thought that was a great idea but the producers had their sights on Alberto De Martino
Alberto De Martino
Alberto De Martino is an Italian film director and screenwriter. He directed 28 films between 1962 and 1985. He also wrote for 23 films between 1959 and 1985.He was born in Rome, Italy.-Selected filmography:...
directing. The producers stipulated that stock footage of the actual Battle of Britain needed to be used in the film and that it should be used in a split-screen method. They asked Enzo if he would direct the special effects sequences and cut it with the stock footage using a split-screen method. Enzo had never heard of "split screen" so he was shown the American films The Thomas Crown Affair
The Thomas Crown Affair (1968 film)
The Thomas Crown Affair is a 1968 film by Norman Jewison starring Steve McQueen and Faye Dunaway. It was nominated for two Academy Awards and won the Award for Best Song with Michel Legrand's "Windmills of Your Mind"...
and the The Boston Strangler
The Boston Strangler (film)
The Boston Strangler is a 1968 film based on the true story of the Boston Strangler and the book by Gerold Frank. It was directed by Richard Fleischer, and stars Tony Curtis as Albert DeSalvo, the strangler, and Henry Fonda as John S...
. He shot the effects sequences and mixed it using a triple split screen method. An example is having a British plane shoot on the left side, having a Nazi plane getting hit on the right side, and having stock footage in the middle. When shown this split-screen footage, the producers were so impressed they decided to have Enzo direct the entire picture. After this, Enzo sat down with a writing partner for a week to rewrite the overlong script to make it more action-orientated and less of a "soap opera".
It should be noted that the film is entirely fictional and historically inaccurate. For instance, the RAF never shot down 94 German planes in one day; London was never "blitzed" in one sortie by "1,000 planes"; and the RAF Control Centre was never attacked in any way. It is also interesting to note that the director uses Me-109s (or near-replicas of them) as RAF "Spitfires", and Spitfires as Luftwaffe "Me-109s". There are also interesting fictional "bombers" that are supposed to be He-111s.
Releases
Severin released the film for the first time ever in America on Region 0 DVD in 2009.The Film is out on Region 2 on the 11 January.
Footage in Other Films
Roughly thirty percent of the film "Eagles Over London" was cut into the macaroni combat film From Hell to VictoryDirty Heroes
Dirty Heroes, also known as From Hell to Victory and Heroes Five , is a 1967 Italian "macaroni combat" war film directed by Alberto De Martino and starring Frederick Stafford.-Cast:* Frederick Stafford - Joe Mortimer, Sesame...
. Enzo said that he and his wife went to go see "From Hell to Victory" in theatres and it made him extremely upset that footage he shot was reused in film.