FLYING TIGERS (1942)

One of a number of films released in the early years of WWII intended as a mix of action and propaganda. This one, from B-studio Republic, doesn't quite match up to similar films from larger studios, but it's fairly effective. Ostensibly, it tells the story of the Flying Tigers, a real-life volunteer squadron of American fliers who were helping the Chinese fight the Japanese just before America entered WWII, but it's really mostly a uncredited remake of two earlier films: the WWI story THE DAWN PATROL (filmed twice, in 1930 and 1939) and ONLY ANGELS HAVE WINGS. John Wayne is the commander of the Tigers, a small, ragtag group of fliers who are basically mercenaries, being paid by the Chinese for each Japanese plane and flier they bring down. Anna Lee is the nurse who loves Wayne (it's vaguely implied that they are as good as living together); Edmund McDonald is Blackie, a disgraced pilot who is given a second chance by Wayne; Paul Kelly is a seasoned pilot who gets grounded because of failing eyesight; John Carroll is Woody, a cocky friend of Wayne's who, tired of getting shot at as a commercial pilot for Rangoon Airlines, joins up with the Tigers and makes no bones that he's in it only for the money--he does a little flirting with Lee on the side, who comes to see that he's not really such a bad guy. However, through carelessness, Carroll winds up being indirectly responsible for the deaths of McDonald and Kelly and, of course, has to redeem himself in the eyes of both Wayne and Lee by sneaking on board with Wayne on a suicide mission, ensuring that the *real* good guy will live to see another day. The bulk of the narrative takes place in late 1941, with Pearl Harbor serving as the climactic turning point. Though there is much here that was certainly intended as wartime propaganda (particularly the remarks made about the Japanese, and the graphic shots of Japanese pilots getting shot in the face), this is mostly a male-bonding soap opera. Apparently, very little of the film reflects the reality of the Flying Tigers, although the Wayne character is nicknamed "Pappy," perhaps in tribute to the real Flying Tiger Pappy Boyington, of "Baa Baa Black Sheep" fame. Many scenes are clearly done with miniatures, but they work fine, and some of the dogfight scenes are quite good. Also with Jimmie Dodd (Jimmie of Disney's Mouseketeers) and Mae Clarke. John Wayne's first war movie. [DVD]