Rating: 
Summary: ABSOLUTELY THRILLING.
Review: THIS MOVIE SHOULD BE SHOWN TO BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION STUDENTS.DEALS WITH LEADERSHIP,CRISIS MANAGEMENT,SELFSACRIFICE,ETC; . A GOOD MANAGER SHOULD LEARN HOW TO BE IMPARTIAL IN DEALING WITH HIS PEERS,SUPERIORS AND SUBORDINATES.AS GENERAL SAVAGE,MR.GREGORY PECK'S ROLE IN THIS MOVIE IS HIGHLY EDUCATIONAL.
Rating:
Summary: A Masterpiece!
Review: This film is an incredible experience! It is one of the finest war films ever made, and depicts the Air War with brutal realism: no screaming, shouting Hollywood stereotypes (as in Memphis Belle): just men going about the abnormal business of fighting a war.You will meet some unforgettable characters: Savage, Gately, Cobb. They are a tribute to their real-life counterparts. If you've ever wondered if Hollywood EVER depicts the military realistically, then wonder no more: get this movie! A word of warning, however: you won't be able to watch this movie just once!
Rating:
Summary: Hard Hitting War Drama That Stands the Test Of Time
Review: You won't find any WW-II flying flick that compares to this one in raw emotion and power. This is one movie that get's it right -- the absolute strains of command, the I'm scared shitless I may not make the next mission outlook that many aircrews had during WW-II air combat over Europe. This movie also has a lot to say about leadership and the strains of command. When I attended the US Air Force Non Commissioned Officers Academy in 1984 we viewed and discussed this movie at length about that very topic. Powerful stuff -- too bad it's not on DVD yet.
Rating:
Summary: Absolutely Brilliant
Review: This movie is a black and white movie set in World War 2. At first glance, the story line seems commonly Hollywood. Gen. Savage inherits a bomber squadron that has fallen upon a streak of bad luck. The bombers are falling victim to the enemy and they are not hitting their target. Gen. Savage comes in, whips the pilots and crews into shape, end of story. While the plot is nothing special, the movie is absolutely brilliant. Despite the movie being set in the military, character of Gen. Savage is universal and timeless. Gen. Savage replaces a friend of his as the commanding officer of the 918th Bomber Group. What makes this movie so different than other war movies is that the movie focuses on the chess game Gen. Savage has to play to get the bomber group to operate effectively with no casualties. At first glance, there is no easy answer as to why the bomber group is not doing well. The movie revolves around Gen. Savage picking the organization apart to find the problems. As Gen. Savage implements changes to fix the issues, he is met with heavy resistance from his own men. A majority of the movie is dedicated to how Gen. Savage implements the changes in the bomber group. This movie is about strategy. It is not about the strategy of war, but rather the strategy and the problems encountered when trying to implement organizational change. While the move would not be as exciting, the role of Gen. Savage could as easily been a CEO or any person who overseas people. I highly recommend this movie to anyone that has to supervise people. It is great to see a war movie that focuses on the "behind the scenes" issues rather than the death and violence of the battlefield.
Rating:
Summary: the meaning of "Maximum Effort"
Review: This is a magnificent World War II film about U.S. airmen stationed in Britain in the fall of 1942, and so much more; it's about the psychology that goes into situations of extreme stress, and what makes a man a winner or loser when put to the test. As General Savage (Peck) says in his pep talk, "fear is normal, but stop worrying about it". Savage has no time for self pity, for himself or anyone else, and his toughness and high principles bring out the best in his men, and it also points up the dangers of emotional attachment in the wrong situations.
The script by Sy Bartlett and Beirne Lay Jr., from their book which is loosely based on a true story, is intelligent and insightful, and the direction by Henry King meticulous. The cinematography by Leon Shamroy is crisp and marvelous, and also includes riveting portions of actual WWII battle footage interspersed in the aerial shots.
The Alfred Newman score also adds much to the film. Gregory Peck is perfect as General Savage, fabulously handsome, with one of the greatest voices of the 20th century, one cannot imagine a better actor for the part. Dean Jagger is also splendid as Major Harvey Stovall; wise and often witty, it is through his eyes that we see the story, told in flashback as he wanders the deserted airfield in 1949.
Other excellent performances come from Gary Merrill and Hugh Marlowe, but every cast member is good, with strong turns from all. Nominated for a Best Actor and Best Picture Oscar (losing out to "All the King's Men" on both counts), "Twelve O'Clock High" spawned a much better than average TV series (1964-67) that I enjoyed watching, especially in its first season when it starred Robert Lansing.
This is a film that is actually used in "leadership seminars" for business executives, and by the U.S. Airforce as a teaching tool. It has lessons for the average person too, but most of all, it's a superb film, with memorable performances. Total running time is 132 minutes.
Rating:
Summary: The best review from someone who lived it.
Review: My father, a b-17 bomber pilot, flew 52 missions out of England (Bassingbourn) during WWII. He spoke very little about his war-time experiences, but he said that this was the closest that Hollywood ever came to capturing what it was like for the B-17 bomber squadrons during WWII. It is a great film about human beings under extraordinary stress, making extremely difficult choices and living with their consequences - but most especially it is a moving portrayal of the complexities of leadership and friendship, and the trust needed to get others to do difficult, if not impossible things.
Rating:
Summary: Leadership & Management
Review: It's natural that all of the customer reviews for this movie elaborate on the military context. From that perspective, there is nothing more to add that hasn't already been written - Twelve O'Clock High is a magnificant war movie made shortly after WWII, and is worthy viewing now, 50+ years after it was made. Yet there's another context for the movie that bears discussing.
Twelve O'Clock High is one of the best movies on leadership that has ever been made, and there are lessons applicable to today's business world that every manager could benefit from. This is not to say that managers/leaders should put in practice the various techniques employed by Gregory Peck's character, however managers/leaders can learn how a 'manager' changed a disenfranchised and demotiviated workforce of individuals into an effective, proud group/team.
Better than spending thousands on management guru's who ineffectively train potential management 'leaders', companies would benefit by watching this movie in a group setting and discussing some of the techniques/methods the Peck character uses to transform the squadron. There's a common modern management technique for accomplishing corporate/department/individual goals - Goals, Objectives, Strategies, and Tactics. This is a heirarchy, where a single goal is developed, then objectives developed to accomplish the goal, then strategies developed around each objective, then finally tactics developed around each strategy.
In Peck's case, the highest order goal was something like 'Create a precision bombing squadron capable of making daylight bombing runs into Germany' (as given to him by his superior). In order to accomplish this goal, Peck had several objectives: 1) Executional excellence within all squadran functions; 2) Allegiance to group over self; 3) Accomplish missions with mimimal loss of life; etc...
A strategy employed in support of objective 1) was squadran drilling - relatively unheard of for battle-hardened squadrons (i.e. "What do we need to drill for since we've been on live missions?"). Another strategy was to highlight and learn from poor performance - here, Peck's character used several tactics: 1) Group review of individual poor performers at daily briefings, and 2) Poor performers were assigned to a 'loser's plane.
These are just a few examples of many within the film, and certainly each can be argued for and against. There is not a more difficult leadership task then balancing a person's life, or a small group of people's, against the lives of many within your responsibility. What managers/leaders do in the business environment pales in comparison. Nonetheless, Peck's character did transform the group, under extremely dire circumstances and incredible performance/time pressure. A fascinating movie, that any leader, or prospective leader, would benefit from watching.
Rating:
Summary: Maximum Effort
Review: After all the WWII movies that I've seen again and again, this one always is the most powerful to me. Maybe it is because my father piloted a B-17 in WWII. However, there are other elements - making difficult decisions, giving your all, dealing with stress under extraordinary conditions.
Some say that Saving Private Ryan really epitomizes the WWII experience, and I'm sure that it does for the heroes who served on the ground.
However, don't overlook this gem of a movie. Even if the director's cut ending is not in it. Even if Gregory Peck sits in a chair for hours (not movie hours - this is minutes) staring at the wall. It is worth the view.
The air scenes are phenomenal but the impact on the people and how they handled it is even more extraordinary. It highlights once again what an important sacrifice the greatest generation provided.
Thank you to them - all of them.
Rating: 
Summary: Wanted to rate it higher
Review: Made just a few years after WW2, "Twelve O'Clock High" deals with the men of the 918th bomber group stationed in England as they fly missions against the Germans. Although it uses some much-publicized "actual aerial combat footage", the focus of the movie is the emotional interaction of the men.
It has fine acting by everyone involved, and Dean Jagger earned his best-supporting actor oscar for his role as Major Stovall, the bomber unit's paper-pushing desk-jockey.
However, the plot is pretty thin - disciplinarian General Savage(Gregory Peck) takes over a bomber unit from a well-liked Lt. Colonel (Hugh Marlowe) who has cratered under pressure, to try to mold them into a crack unit. Although the unit does improve, and the General finally earns the respect of the men in the end, he undergoes his own (rather oddly portrayed) collapse. His eventual outcome is unknown, because the movie ends without knowing if he recovers (probably) or is a basket-case (more realistic).
Although "Twelve O'Clock High" is a good movie in general, I can't give the DVD more than three stars. If General Savage did not sit stone-faced in the chair for 12 hours, I would have added another star. The DVD has trailers for 5 other movies, choice of English or French spoken language, and English or Spanish subtitles. Some reviewers comment that the DVD is missing scenes, but IMDB lists the original movie at 132 minutes, identical to this DVD run-time.
Rating: 
Summary: Great Movie, but extras are MIA!
Review: Someone missed a great opportunity by not placing any extras on this dvd.
Since this is a "realistic" (rather than "Action") war film, that takes a serious look at strategic bombing and the demands of leadership in WW2, it would seem natural to have some documentary extras about air power, strategic bombing and daylight bombing in that era, biographies of the men who the characters were based on, information about the B-17, and interviews with real aircrews and commanders.
Like other reviewers, I watched this film as part of a leadership & management course. This is another area where some great extras could have been added.
It's a great film, don't get me wrong. It just seems natural for Fox to put some effort into the presentation. With the wealth of newsreels, training films, and data for use in special features, it is a shame there are none.
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