← Back to Reviews
in
The movie does something I love and does it very well...world building. I felt like I was immersed in this exotic world of Barranca, surrounded by rain and fog and tropical jungle. I like it that the film mostly stays in the rustic looking hotel/bar/pilot center, that added to being in a different world feel.
Hawks makes his films look real! Especially for 1939, when so many other directors would have went for cheap looking studio sets, but not Hawks! I was blown away by the opening scene of the approaching boat in the dark stormy night. When the man on the deck holds up two fingers and then the camera shows us two other men in the cabin of the ship, that looked real...then we hear the horn do two blast...nice touch.
The port of Barranca shot at night with that ever present fog looked great...totally impressive with the establishing shot done with a wide angle crane shot that really shows off how detailed the set is. It looked real to me. Loved the birds flying off the building, too cool.
If this wasn't enough visual realism, the actual scenes of planes in flight really made the film special. A well done shot is the take off in the rain, of one of the planes and we see it splashing through deep puddles on the runway. That really put me into the mind set of dangerous-by your seat flying.
The most impressive flight scene was the take off from the remote spot with the sick boy and doctor aboard. OMG! that's a real plane taking off and dropping down the side of a step canyon.
I liked Cary Grant and as Raul pointed out it's a very different Cary then we usually see. In the early 1930s he did some similar roles, and the more pensive attitude fits him to a tee.
I also liked Thomas Mitchell, this was more of a serious role for him and he handled it well. I liked the 'heavy' in this, the pilot that no one liked, played by Richard Barthelmess. Allyn Joslyn who played Les Peters, was good too. I knew his face, but always forget his name.
Nice to see Rita Hayworth, my oh my does she have screen presences or what!
The one weak point was Jean Arthur. I do like her, in fact she's one of my favorite comic actresses from the 1930s. But she was ill cast here. I don't think she fit the tone of the movie, with it's darker fatalistic view on life. Her style is more light and charming.
Only Angels Have Wings (1939)
Director: Howard Hawks
Writer: Jules Furthman (screen play)
Cast: Cary Grant, Jean Arthur, Rita Hayworth, Richard Barthlemess, Thomas Mitchell
Genre: Adventure, Drama
I liked this and I think it has a lot of strong points, and one weak point. The strong points first:Director: Howard Hawks
Writer: Jules Furthman (screen play)
Cast: Cary Grant, Jean Arthur, Rita Hayworth, Richard Barthlemess, Thomas Mitchell
Genre: Adventure, Drama
"At a remote South American trading port, the manager of an air freight company is forced to risk his pilots' lives in order to win an important contract."
The movie does something I love and does it very well...world building. I felt like I was immersed in this exotic world of Barranca, surrounded by rain and fog and tropical jungle. I like it that the film mostly stays in the rustic looking hotel/bar/pilot center, that added to being in a different world feel.
Hawks makes his films look real! Especially for 1939, when so many other directors would have went for cheap looking studio sets, but not Hawks! I was blown away by the opening scene of the approaching boat in the dark stormy night. When the man on the deck holds up two fingers and then the camera shows us two other men in the cabin of the ship, that looked real...then we hear the horn do two blast...nice touch.
The port of Barranca shot at night with that ever present fog looked great...totally impressive with the establishing shot done with a wide angle crane shot that really shows off how detailed the set is. It looked real to me. Loved the birds flying off the building, too cool.
If this wasn't enough visual realism, the actual scenes of planes in flight really made the film special. A well done shot is the take off in the rain, of one of the planes and we see it splashing through deep puddles on the runway. That really put me into the mind set of dangerous-by your seat flying.
The most impressive flight scene was the take off from the remote spot with the sick boy and doctor aboard. OMG! that's a real plane taking off and dropping down the side of a step canyon.
I liked Cary Grant and as Raul pointed out it's a very different Cary then we usually see. In the early 1930s he did some similar roles, and the more pensive attitude fits him to a tee.
I also liked Thomas Mitchell, this was more of a serious role for him and he handled it well. I liked the 'heavy' in this, the pilot that no one liked, played by Richard Barthelmess. Allyn Joslyn who played Les Peters, was good too. I knew his face, but always forget his name.
Nice to see Rita Hayworth, my oh my does she have screen presences or what!
The one weak point was Jean Arthur. I do like her, in fact she's one of my favorite comic actresses from the 1930s. But she was ill cast here. I don't think she fit the tone of the movie, with it's darker fatalistic view on life. Her style is more light and charming.