It reminded me of old Hollywood movies of long ago. The movie revolved around the mission and character development of the pilots learning to push themselves further not only in flying, but learning to trust each other.
I appreciated the no sex sex scene, remember when movies used to show the characters in bed and then show them afterwards - the audience has always been able to figure out what happened - this movie had such a scene.
We the audience had something to root for we wanted those pilots to not only succeed in a mission but come home alive. It was a good movie watched on IMAX which makes it even more special.