slymusic
Filmed in glorious Technicolor, and masterfully directed by Michael Curtiz, "Captains of the Clouds" is a gripping World War II drama concerning the careers, romances, and bravery of the Canadian bush pilots. Boasting an exciting screenplay full of witty dialogue and thrilling aerial footage, this is a motion picture well worth the price of admission. Young, cocky bush pilot Brian MacLean (James Cagney) is a "price-cutting son of a bozo" who swipes jobs left & right from other envious pilots, including Johnny Dutton (Dennis Morgan), Francis Patrick "Tiny" Murphy (Alan Hale), "Blimp" Lebec (George Tobias), and "Scrounger" Harris (Reginald Gardiner). Their attempts at revenge start a chain of events that eventually lead all five men directly to the Royal Canadian Air Force. Despite the RCAF's plans to make a flying instructor out of him, Brian has an intense desire to fight in the war. His superior happens to be Johnny, his "rival" for the "affections" of Emily Foster (Brenda Marshall). In the end, when everything is forgiven, Johnny and Brian lead several squadrons of unarmed bombers toward England, when Brian's gallantry is suddenly put to the test.Some of the highlights from "Captains of the Clouds" include the following. Near the beginning, there is an extended edge-of-the-seat chase sequence as Brian transports a nervous scruffy old-timer (Clem Bevans) in his seaplane. Typically not following RCAF protocol, Brian (now a staff pilot for a bombing & gunnery school in Jarvis, Ontario) takes a young Alabaman recruit (Russell Arms) on an unauthorized bombing test flight, unfortunately buzzing the targets too close and getting hit by the bomb splinters. Cashiered from the RCAF, Brian and Tiny spend all day in a back room at a tavern and harmonize a catchy number: "Bless them all, bless them all, / the short and the wide and the tall...", etc. In a private talk with Johnny, Brian's determination to fly an unarmed bomber with Johnny's squadron clearly shines through, and when that armed Messerschmitt appears, tension surely mounts as the squadrons are powerless to fight back, until Brian decides to break formation! And finally, the patriotic song "Captains of the Clouds", written by Harold Arlen and Johnny Mercer, can be heard several times throughout this picture; wonderfully orchestrated by Max Steiner, is it any wonder that this song was quite effective in boosting morale for all the Canadian & American servicemen fighting overseas? In closing, let us call our attention to the splendid casting of "Captains of the Clouds". James Cagney was the perfect choice to play Brian MacLean, an undercutting young rogue who feels that the rules do not necessarily apply to him. Handsome Dennis Morgan is superb as the dashing Johnny Dutton, who dreams of someday owning his own airline, but whose life takes an unexpected turn. Brenda Marshall is fine as the morally shallow Emily Foster, torn between Johnny and Brian; how she finally ends up is somewhat bizarre! Not to mention the likable Alan Hale as Tiny Murphy, George Tobias (a great dialectician) as the French-Canadian Blimp Lebec, and Reginald Gardiner as the British weasel who lives up to his name - Scrounger Harris.
Michael_Elliott
Captains of the Clouds (1943) *** 1/2 (out of 4) Extremely exciting actioneer from Warner about a bush pilot (James Cagney) who pisses everyone off and then joins the Canadian Air Force to train pilots for battle in WW2. Top-notch acting, incredibly flight sequences and an all around good story makes this a wonderful little gem that really sticks out from the various war films produced in this era. I've had the chance to see this movie countless times over the years but kept pushing it back and I'm really kicking myself for doing that. The love triangle between Cagney, Dennis Morgan and Brenda Marshall is very well handled and doesn't come off simply as formula melodrama. This mixes in well when we hit the action stuff and the reasoning behind the constant battle between Cagney and Morgan. The entire cast does a great job in their roles and this includes the three leads as well as Alan Hale and George Tobias. The flight sequences are incredibly impressive and the ending is packed with intense action. The Technicolor (Cagney's first) also benefits the film greatly with all the beautiful locations and it really brings the blues out of the skies. The film was certainly made to be patriotic and it pulls that off extremely well with the ending.
Cactus-7
This is one of my favorite films, but not because of Cagney or Morgan. Brenda Marshall is the jewel in this picture's crown. She provides the blue-jean wearing, North Country beauty in the film and drives the fly-boys crazy. Marshall, who bears a resemblance to Madolyn Smith Osborne, wants to get to the big city regardless of how she gets there. The resulting competition among pilots keeps the story line from being completely aviation oriented. This is a good look at Canadian bush aviation in the 1930's and the cast is excellent. As with all films of this period, airplanes are shown doing things that are aerodynamically impossible, but it doesn't take away from the picture. There are even early aeromedical ideas about how G-forces affect the human body. Filmed entirely on location in Canada, much of the scenery is stunningly beautiful. Canadian politics are even slipped in during graduation ceremony when Air Marshal Bishop refers to pilots from "loyal Quebec." All in all a fun film.
ddniekamp
I feel that I saw this movie with James Cagneys sister,Jeanne,in the role Brenda Marshall played and was called"BUSH PILOTS".I have not been able to find any reference to this any where.I checked Jeanne Cagney movies with no luck.I checked James Cagney movies with no luck.Can anyone help?It is so vivid in my memory that I can see Jeanne Cagney in the role and the name "Bush Pilots" as the movie started.Jeanne Cagney did not make many movies but I could swear this was one and was never given credit for her role in it-even if it was redone with Brenda Marshall.Granted,she wasn't a "star" as most leading ladys were known,but I'm sure She was in this movie as it was originally released.
