Best Naval Aviation movies

[Meyerkord]

View attachment 22229
I can’t for the life of me figure out what plane this is supposed to be. My first thought was a gray-painted SNJ, but the cowling looks wrong. And I don’t know of any US carrier aircraft where the RO/Gunner faced forward like that. View attachment 22228

Pretty sure that's a Dauntless. The early models were known for that upper cowling air intake, and the rear seat can pivot to face forward or backward.

 

[Griz882]

Pretty sure that's a Dauntless. The early models were known for that upper cowling air intake, and the rear seat can pivot to face forward or backward.

Not a Dauntless. The length from the cockpit to the end of the cowling is far too short, also, there is no radio antenna post forward of the pilot.
Likely just a mashup for publicity.

 

[Austin-Powers]

Out on a limb... A-24 Banshee maybe?

 

[Austin-Powers]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northrop_BT

Another possibility?

 

[brownshoe]

Good book and good movie.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0099587/

 

[Notanaviator]

My uneducated guess would be that it started out something and ended up trimmed, chopped, and otherwise tweaked by the digital artists responsible for creating the poster, ending up as whatever fit on the poster while still showing the crew and the propeller. It doesn’t necessarily look like a still, so potentially could just be digital.

 

[jmcquate]

Just a Texan made to look like an SBD..........a trick done for A6Ms for decades.

 

[Hair Warrior]

Maybe not the best film, but probably the most realistic. It features F/A-18C’s from VMFA-314.

 

[Python]

View attachment 22231
Maybe not the best film, but probably the most realistic. It features F/A-18C’s from VMFA-314.

While I believe it is the best, wouldn't call it the most realistic by a long shot. Love the drag chute, “emergency fuel tank,” and numerous compound NATOPS emergencies on the displays...such as the dreaded Dual Left AMAD Pressure cautions.

 

[Kaman]

The RO/Gunner in the Curtiss SB2C “Helldiver” could face either forward or aft. However, I guess they’re trying to simulate either the Devastator or the Dauntless. I’m likely to skip this movie for a variety of reasons . In an interesting anecdote, I served with the son of RADM Gillcrist who was among the Naval Aviators that flew in the filming of, “Tora Tora Tora”. I first saw that movie in the base movie theater at Otis AFB as a USAF dependent.

 

[Austin-Powers]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vought_SB2U_Vindicator

 

[Uncle Fester]

 

[Gatordev]

I'm weary. Roland Emmerich likes to rely on VFX way too much to move story along. And honestly, that trailer shows it.

 

[Uncle Fester]

I'm weary. Roland Emmerich likes to rely on VFX way too much to move story along. And honestly, that trailer shows it.

Thanks, Buzz Killington.

 

[Gatordev]

Thanks, Buzz Killington.

Oh, so we've met. I readily admit I'm not the guy to watch a(n) historical movie with, especially if I've read any kind of "book" about said story.