Hurricane (2018 film)


Hurricane is a 2018 biographical war film drama, produced by Krystian Kozlowski and Matthew Whyte, directed by David Blair, and written by Alastair Galbraith and Robert Ryan. The film stars Iwan Rheon, with Milo Gibson, Stefanie Martini, Marcin Dorociński, Kryštof Hádek and Christopher Jaciow in supporting roles. Hurricane depicts the experiences of a group of Polish pilots of No. 303 Squadron RAF in the Battle of Britain in the Second World War. The film had its premiere in Warsaw, Poland on 17 August 2018. It was released in the UK on the 7 September 2018.

Plot

The pilots of No. 303 Squadron RAF, are a group of Polish fliers who have escaped from Europe, following the Nazi invasions of Poland and France, to join the Royal Air Force. Canadian RAF pilot John Kent, who became known as 'Kentowski' has his work cut out for him when he's handed the angry and often maligned squadron to command. Piloting Hawker Hurricane fighter aircraft, 303 Squadron works through language barriers, cultural differences and their grief on the loss of loved ones to become highly effective in the Battle of Britain. At the conclusion of the film, the Polish pilots are told that they will be repatriated to Communist Poland.

Cast

Zygmunt Klein was the factual Jewish pilot portrayed in the film talking to Zumbach by the coach in the scene overlooking the sea at Broadstairs; for details on Klein see 'Fighting Back' by Martin Sugarman, Chapter on 'Jews in the Battle of Britain' 2017, pub by Valentine Mitchell

Production

The script is fiction so it is not a historical depiction of all events. One news item provided this comment after researching the content of the film and the actual history: "the film attempted to stick close to fact, but the needs of dramatic action often swayed the plot into fictitious and occasionally unrealistic narratives". In late 2017 and early 2018 some scenes were shot on the Kent coast at Stone Bay and Victoria Gardens in Broadstairs.

Reception

On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 83% based on reviews from 6 critics, with an average rating of 5.67/10.
The Review in The Guardian was mixed with a 3/5 star rating. Leslie Felperin made this concluding comment: "The lack of budget, relative to Dunkirk at least, is glaring in the aerial dogfights, and the score is too maudlin and on the nose, but director David Blair navigates the whole thing through the storm with watchable competence".

Home Media

Mission of Honor was released April 30, 2019 by Cinedigm on Region A Blu ray, DVD, and streaming video.