The Big Lift ** (1950, Montgomery Clift, Paul Douglas, Cornell Borcher) – Classic Movie Review 11,949

Director George Seaton’s 1950 20th Century Fox American black and white drama film The Big Lift stars Montgomery Clift, Paul Douglas, and Cornell Borchers.

The Big Lift is a solid, well-meaning, though uninspiring ‘faction’ drama about two clashing American Air Force personnel (Montgomery Clift, Paul Douglas) airlifting supplies to a Soviet-blockaded Berlin in 1948.

It needs a lift that good actors Clift as the pilot and German-hating ground operations sergeant Douglas can’t quite seem to give it. The fact-packed story, casting of real American Air Force personnel as themselves and Berlin location filming add the desired realism, but the worthy tone and Clift’s romance with Berlin fraulein Cornell Borchers take it away again.

Clift turned down Sunset Blvd to do this.

O E Hasse, Bruni Loebel, and Danny Davenport also appear.

Paul Douglas is best remembered for two baseball comedy movies, It Happens Every Spring (1949) and Angels in the Outfield (1951), as well as Panic in the Streets, A Letter to Three Wives (1949), The Big Lift (1950), The Guy Who Came Back (1951), When in Rome (1952) The Maggie (1954), and Executive Suite (1954).

The Big Lift is directed by George Seaton, runs 120 minutes, is made and released by 20th Century Fox, is written by George Seaton, is shot in black and white by Charles G Clarke, is produced by William Perlberg, is scored by Alfred Newman and is designed by Lyle R Wheeler.

© Derek Winnert 2022 Classic Movie Review 11,949

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