by Steve Blackburn
synopsis
Narrated by actor Alec Baldwin, this documentary profiles the adventurous, contentious, and very talented director William Wellman (1896-1975). Ambulance driver for the French Foreign Legion and decorated American pilot in World War I, Wellman later became a barnstorming stunt pilot, but found his true calling directing such classic Hollywood films as Wings, Public Enemy, A Star Is Born, Beau Geste, The Ox-Bow Incident, and The High and the Mighty. Highlights include clips from his movies and interviews with or clips featuring Clint Eastwood, Robert Mitchum, Gregory Peck, Martin Scorsese, Mike Connors, Nancy Davis, James Garner, Darryl Hickman, Arthur Hiller, Tab Hunter, Richard Widmark, Robert Wise, Jane Wyman, and others.
