Flight Command (1940)

Pretty good movie. I'm watching a bunch of war movies on TCM, as of December 7th. They did not have an affair....they were just friends. He was keeping her busy and happy after her friend die in an air accident. He knew she was married and didn't do anything to jeopardize her marriage. This was all in her mind even before she meets Pensacola. She doesn't say anything about him when she tells her husband she's leaving. She was very upset and depressed after Banning died and her husband wasn't around to comfort and console her. Drake was just spending time with her when she was trying to isolate herself. Men and women don't have to be having an affair to spend time together. He would have stayed away if her husband wasn't away; he was being a friend!

Flight Command is a wonderful look into a Navy Fighting Squadron a year before the U.S. entered World War 2. Starring Robert Taylor as Ensign Alan Drake, a fresh graduate of the Navy's Flight School in Pensacola, he's an eager young pilot assigned to a veteran Squadron, Fighting 8, better known as the "Hellcats". Walter Pidgeon is his CO, Lt. Commander Bill Gary and Ruth Hussey plays Pidgeon's wife, Lorna Gary. All three put in a fine performance. The supporting cast does a fine job as well, making it believable that they were a very tight knit group of fliers.The movie had full support of the U.S. Navy and it shows. The attention to detail is excellent, giving the viewer a great inside look into what the pilots did in and out of the cockpit. The aircraft featured is the Grumman F3F-2, the last biplane fighter ever flown by the Navy on their aircraft carriers. It's great to see these pudgy fighters going through their paces. At the time this movie was filmed, Fighting Squadron 8 actually didn't exist. It wouldn't be formed for another year in the fall of 1941.The story line is quite touching at times, especially between the three main characters. Ruth Hussey plays the outwardly tough but inwardly unsettled wife of the squadron commander very well. There isn't a bad portrayal by any of the actors in the film. Hats off to the production team for keeping this film on the level. There's a realism to Flight Command that is very well done. I can imagine that this movie had an effect on recruitment of Navy pilots just like Top Gun did back in the mid 80's.I really couldn't recommend this movie enough, I feel it's that entertaining in so many ways. The story line, the acting and the look back at Naval Aviation at the end of its Golden Era make Flight Command a great choice.

I gave this movie a look during TCM's Memorial Day Weekend marathon. I'm not sorry. There's nothing new in the plot: it's a typical "cocky kid screws up but finally proves himself" story with one interesting twist -- among the kid's (Robert Taylor, in a decent performance) many screw-ups is a friendship with his boss' wife which others perceive the wrong way.By the way, the "boss" in question is his CO -- did I mention the "cocky kid" has just become a Navy Hellcat? -- and the "others" are his fellow officers.The flying footage -- and there's a lot of it -- is okay but somewhat pedestrian since it's mostly training and search-and-rescue stuff. The movie was made in 1940 and several references are made to the war in Europe, but America had not yet joined in, so there's no combat flying. Still, there are interesting moments including a training and competition mission where the new pilot compounds an error and ends up tangled in a cloth target sleeve which nearly causes him to crash yet another plane.Taylor is okay as the new pilot, although I'm not one of his biggest fans. The first couple of scenes between Pigeon (the CO) and Ruth Hussey (the CO's wife) seem a little awkward and the banter seems forced, but they get better. Pigeon excels in playing "nice guy without a clue about women" roles, whether he's the father or the husband. I wasn't familiar with Hussey before but will correct that mistake as she turned in a very nice performance. Likewise the performance of Shepperd Strudwick as her unfortunate brother -- inventor of a navigational device he hopes will enable planes to land in fog. Red Skelton's role as "Mugger" seemed artificial and forced -- unusual, I thought, as he usually seems very relaxed in front of the camera, but I have heard this was his first movie.It won't win any awards, but it's a fun way to spend a couple of hours, with a likable story & performances.

Hackneyed war drama about a hot shot naval pilot(Robert Taylor) being assigned to one of the Navy's most prestigious squadrons. He must prove his worth and fit into the elite group at the same time live down the assumption he has had an affair with his Commanding Officer's(Walter Pidgeon)wife(Ruth Hussey). For the time period the special effects are above par. The script seems lacking. Interesting supporting cast includes:Paul Kelly, Nat Pendleton and Red Skelton.