REVIEW: ‘Mission of Honor’ Home Video Release

Mission of Honor (known as Hurricane in the United Kingdom), tells a little known story of the 303 Royal Air Force (RAF) Squadron. A group made up of primarily Polish pilots (with a few Czechs thrown in for good measure), who were instrumental in the fight to protect Great Britain itself from the threat of Nazi invasion. The most successful squadron in the RAF, the 303 were responsible for 20% of the casualties in the Battle of Britain.

what did they get for their service? Prejudice and ridicule. And when the war was over the men were banned from the victory parade, and then forced to leave the country. Many returning to Poland where they were then either killed or forced into work camps, largely because of their contribution to the British war effort.

It’s a timely story in a world where 52% of Britons voted to leave the European Union, largely because of prejudice and bigotry against the foreign population (made up largely of Polish immigrants). The more things change, the more they stay the same.

Though there are no end of war films (especially British ones) about World War II these days, Mission of Honor has managed to find a compelling and mostly unknown story to bring a fresh take on the most deadly war of the modern era.

As for special features, this Blu-ray has more than you’ll see from many smaller films these days. Instead of a Director’s commentary, we get a fairly long Q&A with director David Blair. which touches largely on the importance of telling this story that few have heard of (indeed, in the interviews everyone admits they’d never heard of these pilots and their important contribution to the fight). Other interviews include with stars Iwan Rhoen, Milo Gibson, and a combo interview with the ladies of the film, Stefanie Martini, Rosie Gray, and Emily Wyatt.

Mission of Honor is available now on Blu-ray and Digital. You can purchase it through Amazon, and check out the trailer below.