Flight (1929) DVD-R

Starring Jack Holt, Lila Lee, Ralph Graves, George Irving, Harold Goodwin
Directed by Frank Capra

Print: black/white
Runtime: 110 min.
Genre: action
Print Quality: B

This early Frank Capra talkie stars popular screen action team Jack Holt
and Ralph Graves as US marines stationed in Nicaragua. The "two guys
fighting over one gal" throughline is there because the audience
expected it -- and besides, leading lady Lila Lee is awfully cute. But the
meat of the story lies in the fact that Holt and Graves are pilots, required
to fly their Curtis fighter-bomber on dangerous missions. The flight
scenes, shot without the benefit of special effects or back projection, are
truly awe-inspiring, and served as stock footage for countless Columbia
films in future years. Released in both silent and sound versions, Flight
was a major success for the tiny Columbia studios. Its effectiveness is all
the more remarkable when one realizes that star Jack Holt had a lifelong
fear of flying!