Wang Yibo

Hu Jun

Zhou Dongyu

Xu Kaicheng

Bu Yu

Zhai Yujia

Tian Zhuangzhuang

Pan Binlong

Sun Qiheng

Zichen Wang

Zhang Wenbin

Lu Xin

Yu Shi

Kang Xuan

Guan Gui

Xiaolei Wei

Liu Xiaoshi

Han Han

Li Jie

Dominic Tan

Yuxia Bai

Guo Sida

Action

Drama

长空之王

Bona Film Group

China

CinemaSerf

"Lei Yu" (the competent Yibo Wang) is an aspiring test pilot who is selected to take part in a prestigious programme to improve the efficiency of the Chinese Air Force's jet fighters. A bit of rivalry with "Deng Fang" (Yosh Yu) and inspiration from their commander "Zhang" (Jun Hu) makes sure the young man and his equipment are tested to the extreme - but can he rise to the challenge? It certainly has a bit of the look of "Maverick" (2022) to it, with some impressive aerial photography and dog-fighting and it also tries to imbue something of the engineering and science to the plot - crediting the young  airmen with skills well beyond just being able to fly a plane. Sadly, though, the producers just couldn't (or wouldn't) steer clear of the political jingoism that rather nauseatingly lauds the virtues of their Air Force against an unknown (English-speaking) foe that is constantly harassing and threatening them. By mid-way through I felt rather sorry for "Lei Yu" - to say he seemed a bit accident-prone would be like saying Jonah liked whales - so the fact that he survives at all is quite a remarkable feat! There's the merest hint of a romance with his doctor "Shen Tianran" (Dongyu Zhou) but for the most part this is all about a young man's determination to succeed. It's perfectly watchable with some decent production standards and had it kept off the flag-waving grass, it could have made for another example of well-enough made high-octane cinema. At times it just smacks too much of a party rallying cry though, and that lets it down.

普通话

Born to Fly

Official International Trailer [Subtitled]