FLYING TIGERS, made on a tight budget for Republic Studios, has JOHN WAYNE doing his standard hero role with ease and skill as he copes with a squadron of American men volunteering to shoot down Japanese planes during the early days of WWII. And contrary to another's comments, that's not Harry Truman declaring war on the Japanese, it's Franklin D. Roosevelt, heard in his famous speech to Congress wherein he invokes that "day of infamy" phrase.
If this were an MGM film, it would have been a perfect vehicle for SPENCER TRACY (in Wayne's role) and CLARK GABLE (in the JOHN CARROLL part of a cocky flyer). Carroll breezily handles the role of Jason, Wayne's old service buddy who shows up at the outpost in China so he can shoot down the Japanese for $500 per downed aircraft and makes no bones about it. His cavalier attitude is a turnoff for the men in the squad, so we know he's going to have to redeem himself in everyone's eyes by becoming a hero before the last reel is over.
It's a clichéd story, done before in films like ONLY ANGELS HAVE WINGS, even the part about the disabled man whose eyesight bans him from flying but nevertheless must prove himself when the chips are down and he gets the chance to fly because Carroll doesn't show up in time. These and other plot devices seem borrowed from the Howard Hawks film, whether intentionally or not.
But it serves as good, solid entertainment for John Wayne fans, despite the low-budget production values because all of the aerial sequences are well filmed with special effects that make the action as realistic as possible, even when some of the footage appears to be taken from actual stock scenes of dogfights.
Victor Young's score is a solid plus, and the performances are adequate with ANNA LEE as a charming nurse for Wayne's love interest and GORDON JONES as Carroll's sidekick, with MAE CLARK, TOM NEAL and David BRUCE in minor roles.
Carroll's role is played in such a way that he reminded me of a poor man's Clark Gable--the same cocky charm and arrogance that Gable would have brought to the role.
For fans of WWII war films, this one fills the bill nicely.
If this were an MGM film, it would have been a perfect vehicle for SPENCER TRACY (in Wayne's role) and CLARK GABLE (in the JOHN CARROLL part of a cocky flyer). Carroll breezily handles the role of Jason, Wayne's old service buddy who shows up at the outpost in China so he can shoot down the Japanese for $500 per downed aircraft and makes no bones about it. His cavalier attitude is a turnoff for the men in the squad, so we know he's going to have to redeem himself in everyone's eyes by becoming a hero before the last reel is over.
It's a clichéd story, done before in films like ONLY ANGELS HAVE WINGS, even the part about the disabled man whose eyesight bans him from flying but nevertheless must prove himself when the chips are down and he gets the chance to fly because Carroll doesn't show up in time. These and other plot devices seem borrowed from the Howard Hawks film, whether intentionally or not.
But it serves as good, solid entertainment for John Wayne fans, despite the low-budget production values because all of the aerial sequences are well filmed with special effects that make the action as realistic as possible, even when some of the footage appears to be taken from actual stock scenes of dogfights.
Victor Young's score is a solid plus, and the performances are adequate with ANNA LEE as a charming nurse for Wayne's love interest and GORDON JONES as Carroll's sidekick, with MAE CLARK, TOM NEAL and David BRUCE in minor roles.
Carroll's role is played in such a way that he reminded me of a poor man's Clark Gable--the same cocky charm and arrogance that Gable would have brought to the role.
For fans of WWII war films, this one fills the bill nicely.