Flight Command

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Movie
Original title Flight Command
Country of production United States
original language English
Publishing year 1940
length 113 minutes
Rod
Director Frank Borzage
script Wells Root , Harvey S. Haislip , John Sutherland
production J. Walter Ruben
Frank Borzage for
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
music Franz Waxman
camera Harold Rosson
cut Robert J. Kern
occupation

Flight Command (German: Flugkommando or Flugbefehl ) is an American war drama from 1940 directed by Frank Borzage . Robert Taylor plays Ensign Alan Drake, who joins the famous "Hell Cats" squadron and has yet to prove himself. Other leading roles include Ruth Hussey , Walter Pidgeon and Paul Kelly .

The script is based on an original story by Commander Harvey S. Haislip.

action

Squadron commander Bill Gary is happy that his wife Lorna is apparently strong enough to deal with the death that has repeatedly affected the "Hell Cats". She only confides in her brother Jerry Banning, who is also one of the "Hell Cats", how much she worries about her husband. A new member has just been recruited, Ensign Alan Drake, a Pensacola graduate who can't wait to devote himself to his new duties. On his flight to San Diego , he is forced to abandon his plane because of the thick fog and rappel down by parachute. When he then asks for help in a house, he does not know that he is in the property of his superior Bill Gary, whose wife Lorna greets him warmly. In the course of his service, it turns out more and more that Drake is a daredevil who is looking for danger. He has now been nicknamed "Pensacola" by his comrades, some of whom find his daring manner a thorn in the side, so that the men become estranged. Drake gets along quite well with Jerry, however, which also means that he is a welcome guest at the Garys' house.

Jerry decides to test a newly developed anti-fog device, which has not yet been perfected, in thick fog, although this time it is “Pensacola” that has raised concerns. At first the device works very well, but when Jerry prepares to land, it suddenly fails, so that he crashes with his machine. On the way to the hospital he gives Drake a hint that something is wrong with the needle. Bill fails to comfort Lorna, who has rushed to the hospital to see her brother, when Jerry dies. It is Drake who can reach the desperate woman with his words. After Bill is recalled on an important mission shortly after Jerry's death, Drake sets out to redesign the anti-fog machine with the help of Jerry's tip. During this time he befriends Lorna more and more, who is also touched by the similarity in nature of Jerry and Drake. While dining together in a restaurant one evening, they are seen together by Dusty Rhodes, a member of the Hell Cats, who draws wrong conclusions. Lorna, aware of her attraction to Drake, draws the logical conclusion, thanks him for his kindness and explains that they shouldn't see each other again.

When Lorna's husband returns the next day, she tells him that she is not the brave woman he suspects in her and leaves him to rethink things as she lets him know. Bill is devastated for now. Dusty now spreads that "Pensacola" was to blame for the couple's separation. The men then confront Drake with their suspicions and want him to leave their unit. Although he was not to blame, Drake no longer wants to stay in a cadre where he is believed to be. So he submits his farewell, but first has to take part in an upcoming maneuver. Immediately afterwards, the cadre is ordered on a rescue mission after a crashed plane. Bill's plane suffers an oil leak, so that he veers out of the formation. Despite orders to the contrary, Drake follows him. After Bill crash-lands on a beach, Drake takes his injured supervisor onto his plane and sits back at the head of his squadron. Since a thick fog has now come in, he sees only one way to bring the squadron's planes safely ashore. He uses Jerry's anti-fog machine and is thus able to ensure a safe landing for everyone through the layers of fog.

Immediately after landing, Dusty sends Lorna a telegram. The couple are reconciled at Bill's bedside. Lorna then tells Dusty what it was really like with her and Drake and that he was not guilty of anything. Dusty apologizes to his comrade and asks Pensacola to stay, because he is a real "Hell Cat".

production

Production notes

The film was shot from August 19 through October 10, 1940 at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios in Culver City and at a large Navy base in San Diego , California . According to the Hollywood Reporter , an early working title for the film was Hell Cat . The opening credits of the film include thanks to the United States Navy for their cooperation. On August 7, 1940, the magazine spread that the English writer RC Sherriff had installed the script, but this was not confirmed.

background

Rob Nixon said the Flight Command studio is introducing new star Robert Taylor to his favorite hobby. In the biography created by Axel Madsen about Barbara Stanwyck , who was married to Taylor from 1939 to 1951, it was explained that Taylor had decided to take flight lessons for his role and found the ascent in the air to be liberating and exhilarating. He then dealt with the aviation profession in almost every free minute, and in this respect he could be described as an enthusiast. That was a problem for Stanwyck because she hated to fly. Taylor was so obsessive about his new pastime that he even had to consult the studio psychiatrist on the instructions of the MGM boss . When the United States entered World War II, the actor joined the United States Navy , although MGM mogul Louis B. Mayer tried to prevent this, fearing for the safety of his star.

Frank Borzage was one of the most successful directors in Hollywood at the time the film was made . Although Flight Command was coupled with an implied love story, the film helped to change public opinion in the United States on the fight against the rise of fascism in Europe . Ironically, for Robert Taylor, the film marked the gradual decline of his career. In a smaller role, Red Skelton makes an appearance in the film, which soon rose to become one of MGM's best comic stars.

Film music

  • Eyes of the Fleet , music and lyrics: JV McElduff, Lieut. Comdr. USN
    • played as part of the total score
  • Taps , written by Daniel Butterfield
    • played during the death parts
  • Anchors Aweigh , written by Charles A. Zimmermann, Alfred Hart Miles, and R. Lovell
    • played during the Pensacola sequence

publication

The film premiered on December 17, 1940 in Washington, DC , and then generally ran in the United States on December 27, 1940. The day of the premiere coincided with the celebrations for Pan American Aviation Day.

It was published in the United Kingdom on April 21, 1941, in Mexico on June 26, 1941, in Sweden on November 3, 1941 and in Portugal the day after. The film opened in Finland on July 9, 1948 and in Japan on March 10, 1951. It was also released in Belgium, Brazil, Hungary and Italy.

Reviews

Bosley Crowther of the New York Times found that Flight Command mainly consists of clichés and the dialogues miserable were, circumstances in which not a lot of the actors could be expected , although it still amazingly well be. The aerial photos above the majestic clouds were praised . Except for these recordings, Flight Command is just a routine adventure film, exciting for young people, no doubt, but rather broad for the taste of adults .

"Well-cast story in which an aspiring Robert Taylor tries to make his way in a Marienfliegerstaffel."

- Leonard Maltin : Movie & Video Guide, 1996 edition, p. 438

"Routine patriotics."

- Leslie Halliwell : Halliwell's Film Guide, Seventh Edition, New York 1989, p. 357

Award

A. Arnold Gillespie and Douglas Shearer were nominated for an Oscar in the category "Best Special Effects / Visual Effects" for their exciting flight sequences in this film at the 1942 Academy Awards , but could stand up to the drama I Wanted Wings and her colleague Farciot Edouart , Gordon Jennings and Louis Mesenkop did not enforce it.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Flight Command (1940) Notes at TCM - Turner Classic Movies (English)
  2. ↑ a b Flight Command (1940) Articles at tcm.com (English)
  3. ↑ Bosley Crowther : Emphasis on Defense in "Flight Command" at the Capitol In: The New York Times, January 17, 1941 (English). Retrieved January 4, 2017.
  4. ↑ In the original: Hackneyed story with good cast as upstart Taylor tries to make the grade in naval flight squadron
  5. ↑ In the original: Routine flagwaver