The year is 1940, and the Battle of Britain is going so badly for the RAF that the top brass are reluctantly considering allowing a group of Polish airmen to form a fighter squadron to help repel Jerry. Hopes are not high for the new recruits following their comprehensive defeat by the Luftwaffe over mainland Europe. Yet it quickly transpires that British fears are unfounded – the Polish pilots soon prove to be a crack force.
David Blair’s Hurricane (cert 15, 123 mins) tells the story of this squadron – which racked up more “kills” than any other in the RAF – through a mixture of real-life characters and fictional ones. Before watching Hurricane, I assumed it would be an unremarkable British war film, more suited to a slot on television; it’s better than that, though. What could have been an exercise in sentimental triumphalism instead plays out in more interesting and complex terms. It is more than just a World War II yarn; it is also a plea for recognition for a group of extraordinary men.
