Captains of the Clouds (1942) – full review!

Directed by Michael Curtiz (who would win his only Oscar for directing the Academy Award winning Best Picture released later that same year but competing one year later Casablanca (1942)) with a screenplay co-written by Norman Reilly Raine (The Life of Emile Zola (1937)) this average war drama is credited with being James Cagney’s first Technicolor film. In fact one of the first things I noticed besides Brenda Marshall’s beauty was seeing Cagney Dennis Morgan Alan Hale and George Tobias (perhaps for the first time) in color! Reginald Gardiner also appears though more prominently in the latter half of the film. It’s a story about Canadian bush pilots who compete for jobs with one another until they are (more or less) “forced” to work together. Eventually war breaks out and inspired by a radio broadcast of Winston Churchill’s brave words (“We will never surrender!”) the pilots decide to enlist to join the conflict. There’s a love triangle between Cagney Morgan and Marshall to be resolved and the film’s final 30-40 minutes supplemented with lots of aerial stock footage of military aircraft et al is war related. The film received Oscar nominations for Color Cinematography and Art Direction-Interior Decoration; its special effects are laughable by today’s standards.

A mysterious bush pilot named MacLean is “stealing” all the work and undercutting the fares typically paid for job after job normally performed by Johnny Dutton (Morgan) “Tiny” Murphy (Hale) Blimp Lebec (Tobias) and Scrounger Harris (Gardiner). Of course Brian MacLean is played by Cagney who meets and sweeps Dutton’s fiancée Emily Foster (Marshall) right off her feet. J. M. Kerrigan plays Emily’s father a storekeeper. Later MacLean causes the three to (at least partially) wreck their planes when they try to force him down to show displeasure for his actions. But when MacLean gets hurt hit on the head with his own prop and rescued (pulled out of the water) by Emily Dutton flies through fog and risks his life landing at night to retrieve a doctor (J. Farrell MacDonald) for him. This begins an agreement more than a friendship between Dutton Tiny and MacLean which leads them to work together throughout the Winter off-season transporting supplies for a string of mines (run by Charles Halton). Flying explosives in perilous conditions causes the men to draw closer such that MacLean concerned that Dutton’s return to marry Emily will cause his financial ruin beats him to the punch. Without explaining himself to anyone else MacLean returns first to take Emily to Ottawa with his bankroll where he weds her to keep her from destroying Dutton’s plans to start an airline. Upon learning this from Emily’s father Dutton goes to Ottawa where he learns what’s happened punches out MacLean (who doesn’t really defend himself) and then gives his $4000 to charity before disappearing. Charles Smith plays a bellboy uncredited at the hotel in Ottawa.

Unbeknownst to the others Dutton is the first to hear the call of military service and joins its ranks. Meeting up back home with Tiny Lebec & Scrounger MacLean and company hear the aforementioned inspirational radio broadcast from Winston Churchill (Miles Mander uncredited) and decide that the Canadian Air National Guard needs their help. Willie Fung plays the café owner. The four bush pilots fly their planes confidently onto the military base thinking their services are invaluable only to later find out that despite their vastly superior flying hours they’re too old for combat. They are told that their age makes them susceptible to blacking out during high-G force maneuvers but that their skills are needed as instructors. Reginald Denny plays the officer in charge; Gig Young plays one of the student pilots; George Meeker appears briefly in a club scene. MacLean finds that Dutton is his commanding officer and must deal with that in addition to being told that he won’t be able to fight in the war. There are incidents of insubordination including MacLean and Tiny buzzing Air Marshall W. A. Bishop himself before tragedy and eventually acts of heroism follow. Dutton also learns the truth about MacLean with regards to Emily which enables the film’s final act.

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