A simple story of young pilots ,written by Robert Grasset ,a pilot reportd missing in Tobruk ,1943,one deals with a nationalist militarist work , which reflected the post -WW2 zeitgeist .
The plot is rather naive, the characters are cardboard ,all is terribly conventional and predictable;yet ,it retains some charm ,the charm of old-fashioned things,of bygone days : the camaraderie between the boys ,their pranks ,the daredevil recruit who provokes angry responses from his superiors ...
WW2 is represented by a widow ,Mrs Granier,a godmother of sorts to this youth ,who lives in the souvenir of her killed in action husband .She's got two gorgeous nieces;one of them,Estelle, is soon the cause of a rivalry :Brécourt, jealous of daredevil Martin in love with the girl, goes as far as to accuse him of a crash which almost claims the lieutenant's life ...and which may bring his career to an end.
The title is well-chosen;it means « the big aviary » ; "now we release them" ,the commander says, at the end of the movie, "and they will fly away....."
