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OPEN CLASSIC CINEMA · 702

Wings

1927144 minUnited States
WarRomanceDramaAdventure
Video edition
Wikimedia Commons
Original language
No spoken dialogue. Intertitles: English.
This copy runs
138:38
Subtitles
No subtitle track in this language

Languages and subtitles

No subtitle track in this language

Wikimedia Commons · William A. Wellman / John Monk Saunders / Hope Loring / Louis D. Lighton / Julian Johnson · Public domain

Synopsis

Two young men competing for the same woman's affection enlist as pilots in the First World War. Training turns their rivalry into friendship, while combat exposes them to losses they could not have imagined at home. A neighbor who loves one of them joins the war effort too, but misunderstandings follow the characters from their hometown to France.

Cast

DirectorsWilliam A. Wellman

Historical context

Wings received the first Academy Award for the category now known as Best Picture. William A. Wellman's wartime aviation experience informed a production built around the spectacle and danger of flight.

Reference: WikipediaReference: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences

Behind the scenes

The film exists in silent and synchronized musical presentations. Its synchronized version has music and effects but no audible dialogue; that distinction matters when identifying it as a work of silent storytelling.

Reference: WikipediaReference: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences

Sources and availability

General references identify the work and its copy. A reference beside an editorial section is linked to the claims checked in that section.

Wikipedia — film referenceWikidata — film identity and credits

Work catalogued as public domain in the United States.

The public-domain references concern the original films in the United States. Rights can differ for other countries, editions, restorations, music or translations. Sources are listed on each film page.

Availability checked on September 12, 2026.

Photograph credit

Photographs cropped, resized and optimized as WebP, displayed in monochrome.

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