Michael Curtiz's Dive Bomber is without a doubt one of the most beautiful and humbling films to pay tribute to the boys that guard us on the sea and in the air. Here, Errol Flynn plays a Navy surgeon trying to solve two of the biggest problems facing Navy pilots: blackouts and high-altitude sickness. He teams up with researcher Ralph Bellamy and pilot Fred MacMurray to test different theories and see what works and what doesn't.
There is a lot that doesn't work with this movie, but there is some which does. The aerial shots of planes taking off cruisers and flying in different patterns in the air is somewhat beautiful and totally astonishing. The colors blend well together and it truly is a credit to Curtiz that he made all that work. Aside from that, the biggest weakness here is the plot. It is too long and has too many subplots that have nothing to do with the main thread of finding cures for pilots, such as that of a man avoiding paying his wife alimony and Flynn fighting a man after crashing into him on the road. Flynn and MacMurray are great actors, but the dialog here seems dumbed-down some and the characters are too stiff and aristocratic for us to relate to them.
I would recommend seeing this for its aerial cinematography and because Flynn and MacMurray are two of the most likable actors of all time. Still, more than once is not necessary.
There is a lot that doesn't work with this movie, but there is some which does. The aerial shots of planes taking off cruisers and flying in different patterns in the air is somewhat beautiful and totally astonishing. The colors blend well together and it truly is a credit to Curtiz that he made all that work. Aside from that, the biggest weakness here is the plot. It is too long and has too many subplots that have nothing to do with the main thread of finding cures for pilots, such as that of a man avoiding paying his wife alimony and Flynn fighting a man after crashing into him on the road. Flynn and MacMurray are great actors, but the dialog here seems dumbed-down some and the characters are too stiff and aristocratic for us to relate to them.
I would recommend seeing this for its aerial cinematography and because Flynn and MacMurray are two of the most likable actors of all time. Still, more than once is not necessary.