I don't think the movie was considered that great when it first came out. I think the legendary status came over time. One must remember that it was an innovative flick in that it used lots of "high tech" stuff for its time, like the flashback scenes as well as using midgets as airplane mechanics.
A lot of legendary lines came out of that movie too including the infamous misquote of "play it again Sam".
Yes I think the movie is overrated, but not quite as much as Citizen Kane IMO. It's a great movie however and the story line is wonderful.
And it did prove that the French has the best National Anthem.
