This is one of those films that will make your eyes pop back into your head as you shake it out of shear utter disbelief of what you're seeing on screen. The story of a group of women who enter a plane race has a few redeeming qualities, but ultimately it suffers from a major lack of realism.
Kay Francis, far from the trappings of society in her heyday as the top diva of Warner Brothers, dresses down for a change as a pilot who falls for a married pilot (William Gargan) whose estranged wife (Sheila Bromley) demands the plane that Gargan has promised Francis as part of their settlement. The nasty Bromley even has Francis's plane tampered with after another pilot, Francis's pal Eve Arden, has cracked up. This leads to Francis's plane loosing all of its gas, an emergency landing, and finally flying to the finish with only one of the two landing gear wheels attached.
There is not just one nail-biting potential crash scene, but two. First of all, Arden's plane begins leaking oil, and she nosedives to a crash which leaves her still living and able to move her arms to hand Francis a note. Then, Francis makes her landing with only one wheel. Both are majorly flabbergasting with the way they are handled.
The one element of Arden's crash is the genuine look of horror she has, which is a testimony to one of the great comics of stage and screen in a strictly dramatic role. Her realization of her possible fate is genuinely spooky. Francis, obviously forced to do this lower grade "B" film to end her contract at Warners, does so with dignity, but still deserved better.
Kay Francis, far from the trappings of society in her heyday as the top diva of Warner Brothers, dresses down for a change as a pilot who falls for a married pilot (William Gargan) whose estranged wife (Sheila Bromley) demands the plane that Gargan has promised Francis as part of their settlement. The nasty Bromley even has Francis's plane tampered with after another pilot, Francis's pal Eve Arden, has cracked up. This leads to Francis's plane loosing all of its gas, an emergency landing, and finally flying to the finish with only one of the two landing gear wheels attached.
There is not just one nail-biting potential crash scene, but two. First of all, Arden's plane begins leaking oil, and she nosedives to a crash which leaves her still living and able to move her arms to hand Francis a note. Then, Francis makes her landing with only one wheel. Both are majorly flabbergasting with the way they are handled.
The one element of Arden's crash is the genuine look of horror she has, which is a testimony to one of the great comics of stage and screen in a strictly dramatic role. Her realization of her possible fate is genuinely spooky. Francis, obviously forced to do this lower grade "B" film to end her contract at Warners, does so with dignity, but still deserved better.