Epic of the Air

Waikato Times, Volume 122, Issue 20509, 27 May 1938, Page 4

Epic of the Air

"Conquest of the Air," the London Films great documentary drama of the history of aviation, is at last completed, and one of Mr Korda’s first ta6k«s on his return from America was the supervision of the final editing of this picture. The picture starts with the ♦“ study of the tlight of birds and a summary of the early attempts at human flight to be found in legend and mythology. From this it passes through all the phases of man’s achievement and finishes with an amazing'prophetic reconstruction of the possibilities of flight in the future, based on the pre-sent-day study of the stratosphere. The latter sequence shows the vast metropolitan airport of the future sending out stratosphere liners to all parts of the world, and follows the flight of one air-liner which covers the distance between London and New York in less than two hoursAlthough "Conquest of the Air" may be termed a documentary film, It has a strong dramatic interest as the many historical episodes connected with the invention of mechanical flight have been re-enacted by a large and brilliant cast of players. For instance, Laurence Olivier plays the part of Lunardi, one of the early balloonists, and Margaretta Scott is seen as Isobella d’est in the sequences dealing with Leonardo da Vinci. De Rosier, the Brothers Montgolfier, Count Zeppelin, Borelli, Bleriot, Robert Cocking, Otto Lilienthal, Blanchard, Jeffries, Bacon, d’Ascoli, Wilbur and Orville Wright, are just a few of the many characters played by well-known artists in this film. "Conquest of the Air" was produced by Donald Taylow and directed by Alexander Shaw.