Howard Hughes was notorious for delays and holdups on his productions and in this case an attempt to recycle some of the appeal of his epic Hell's Angels was stalled by a shutdown of the original filming done by Edward Sedgwick from May 19th to June 12th of 1931, featuring Lola Lane and Sidney Toler in the cast. The production would start up again in the fall, September 2nd to early October, now in the hands of Edward Sutherland. Lane was replaced by Ann Dvorak and Toler by William Boyd.
The comedy here involving lifeguards who can't swim and pilots who can't fly is not especially memorable but there are some pre Code moments.
5 Reviews
Howard Hughes at Fox...
AlsExGal23 November 2023
... where he recycled some aerial footage from "Hell's Angels" in what he meant to be a comedy. One of the writers was the witty Robert Benchley, and a director of at least part of the film was comedy director Edward Sedgewick, and yet this thing lands with a thud.
It is just ridiculous without being funny and it is completely disjointed to the point where it could have been one or several two reel shorts and it might have worked or at least worked better.
It starts out being centered on two guys faking and blustering their way through life, Wilkie (Spencer Tracy) and Mitchell (George Cooper). They at first get jobs as lifeguards though they can't swim, mainly so they can brag and get girls. When someone needs rescuing in the water, they let Hogan (William "Stage" Boyd) rescue the guy and then take the credit. Then they show up at a Red Cross benefit fight in two stolen suits. Hogan, billed as "One Punch Hogan" is supposed to fight. He sees Wilkie and Mitchell and starts a fight with them over the beach incident. Wilkie knocks out One Punch Hogan with one punch and then runs. Wilkie and Mitchell then end up in the army but decide to desert and stow away on a ship to South America. Instead the ship is on its way to Europe with a bunch of Army Air Corp pilots onboard. Note that these two don't even know Hogan at this point.
It is here they meet Hogan again when they are caught stowing away and are put in the brig, as it turns out Hogan is actually a sergeant. But Wilkie talks his way out of trouble saying that the two deserted the army so they could fly under the colonel who is in charge of their court martial. Strangely enough this actually cuts some ice with him. So now teaching these two stowaways to be pilots is Hogan's problem. Complications ensue, most of them complete nonsense.
It seems that Spencer Tracy is going for the kind of vibe that James Cagney displayed in similar roles over at Warner Brothers at the time, except Cagney had much better scripts than this as well as those fabulous Warner Brothers contract players. Tracy is really the only reason to watch this. It is the same basic wise guy role he had over at Fox until the precode era ended. His initial straight man, George Cooper, has the screen presence of a peeled potato, so the plot manages to edge him out of that role and Boyd into it, and he does work better but then that is a low bar.
I'd say it is probably only worth it for Spencer Tracy completists. Tracy is the only reason I managed to sit through it to the end.
It is just ridiculous without being funny and it is completely disjointed to the point where it could have been one or several two reel shorts and it might have worked or at least worked better.
It starts out being centered on two guys faking and blustering their way through life, Wilkie (Spencer Tracy) and Mitchell (George Cooper). They at first get jobs as lifeguards though they can't swim, mainly so they can brag and get girls. When someone needs rescuing in the water, they let Hogan (William "Stage" Boyd) rescue the guy and then take the credit. Then they show up at a Red Cross benefit fight in two stolen suits. Hogan, billed as "One Punch Hogan" is supposed to fight. He sees Wilkie and Mitchell and starts a fight with them over the beach incident. Wilkie knocks out One Punch Hogan with one punch and then runs. Wilkie and Mitchell then end up in the army but decide to desert and stow away on a ship to South America. Instead the ship is on its way to Europe with a bunch of Army Air Corp pilots onboard. Note that these two don't even know Hogan at this point.
It is here they meet Hogan again when they are caught stowing away and are put in the brig, as it turns out Hogan is actually a sergeant. But Wilkie talks his way out of trouble saying that the two deserted the army so they could fly under the colonel who is in charge of their court martial. Strangely enough this actually cuts some ice with him. So now teaching these two stowaways to be pilots is Hogan's problem. Complications ensue, most of them complete nonsense.
It seems that Spencer Tracy is going for the kind of vibe that James Cagney displayed in similar roles over at Warner Brothers at the time, except Cagney had much better scripts than this as well as those fabulous Warner Brothers contract players. Tracy is really the only reason to watch this. It is the same basic wise guy role he had over at Fox until the precode era ended. His initial straight man, George Cooper, has the screen presence of a peeled potato, so the plot manages to edge him out of that role and Boyd into it, and he does work better but then that is a low bar.
I'd say it is probably only worth it for Spencer Tracy completists. Tracy is the only reason I managed to sit through it to the end.
Not exactly the heroic types!
planktonrules8 December 2023
"Sky Devils" is a cheaply made film from Howard Hughes which used clips from "Hell's Angels". There's not a huge reason to see it other than it's one of Spencer Tracy's early roles...and you don't see a lot of his acting genius in this one. The copy I found on YouTube has relatively poor sound...so if you can find a better copy, watch it.
Wilkie and Mitchell (Tracy and George Cooper) are less than brave...in fact, they are dumb jerks. When WWI comes along, they are drafted and then go AWOL. They then try to go to South America--and end up on a troop transport headed to France. Somehow, after a long series of cowardly adventures, the pair end up accidentally becoming heroes.
This film is only okay...and at best a time-passer. I think a lot of it is due to the script and lack of effort Hughes put into the production. This is weird, as Hughes was insanely detail-oriented with "Hell's Angels" and a few of his other films...but here it all seems a bit rough.
Wilkie and Mitchell (Tracy and George Cooper) are less than brave...in fact, they are dumb jerks. When WWI comes along, they are drafted and then go AWOL. They then try to go to South America--and end up on a troop transport headed to France. Somehow, after a long series of cowardly adventures, the pair end up accidentally becoming heroes.
This film is only okay...and at best a time-passer. I think a lot of it is due to the script and lack of effort Hughes put into the production. This is weird, as Hughes was insanely detail-oriented with "Hell's Angels" and a few of his other films...but here it all seems a bit rough.
Well worth watching.
diddlycrap24 October 2021
Comedy about WWI flyers
jarrodmcdonald-126 December 2023
Warning: Spoilers
This is an amusing precode comedy from several folks who specialized in farces. Director Edward Sutherland who had been a Keystone Cop for Mack Sennett during the silent film days brings a zany sensibility to an already funny script co-authored by humorist Robert Benchley. There are plenty of screwball elements involving two would-be flyers (Spencer Tracy and George Cooper) who end up behind enemy lines and ultimately save the day, similar to how Buster Keaton operated in DOUGHBOYS (1930).
Of course, the main reason for making the film was so that producer Howard Hughes could use leftover aerial footage from his epic war flick HELL'S ANGELS (1930). There are plenty of flying sequences with some nail-biting stunts, here played for laughs. In addition to the moments in the air, we have a few romantic interludes down on the ground that involve Tracy, an antagonistic sergeant (William 'Stage' Boyd) and a showgirl (Ann Dvorak, who'd also appear in Hughes' gangster picture SCARFACE the same year).
Helped by a talented supporting cast, Tracy and Dvorak come off the best. Despite a continuously raucous turn of events, the pair bring an earnest quality to the scenes in which they meet and start to spend time together. Tracy's character is always on the edge of deserting the army, or at least being accused of it. And at one point, Dvorak is considered to be a possible spy for the Germans. But all those outlandish plot points aside, the real focus is their growing relationship. It's interesting to see these skilled actors early in their careers, not quite the stars they'd inevitably become a short time later.
While this isn't exactly a memorable motion picture, it is still a pleasant enough time passer. A lot of the dialogue has characters uttering sarcastic lines and most of these quips elicit a chuckle. Tracy, in particular, is most adept at comedy and seems to be having an enjoyable time participating in the nonsense. There's a hilarious bit early in the film where he and Cooper end up in the back of a dump truck with hay and manure, which they were not able to do with a straight face.
Other reviewers may comment about the anachronistic fashions on screen. Yes, Ann Dvorak's character seems to wear clothing and sport a hairstyle that belongs to the early 1930s, not the late 1910s. However, I think we can overlook some of these historical goofs, when the end result is so much fun to watch.
Of course, the main reason for making the film was so that producer Howard Hughes could use leftover aerial footage from his epic war flick HELL'S ANGELS (1930). There are plenty of flying sequences with some nail-biting stunts, here played for laughs. In addition to the moments in the air, we have a few romantic interludes down on the ground that involve Tracy, an antagonistic sergeant (William 'Stage' Boyd) and a showgirl (Ann Dvorak, who'd also appear in Hughes' gangster picture SCARFACE the same year).
Helped by a talented supporting cast, Tracy and Dvorak come off the best. Despite a continuously raucous turn of events, the pair bring an earnest quality to the scenes in which they meet and start to spend time together. Tracy's character is always on the edge of deserting the army, or at least being accused of it. And at one point, Dvorak is considered to be a possible spy for the Germans. But all those outlandish plot points aside, the real focus is their growing relationship. It's interesting to see these skilled actors early in their careers, not quite the stars they'd inevitably become a short time later.
While this isn't exactly a memorable motion picture, it is still a pleasant enough time passer. A lot of the dialogue has characters uttering sarcastic lines and most of these quips elicit a chuckle. Tracy, in particular, is most adept at comedy and seems to be having an enjoyable time participating in the nonsense. There's a hilarious bit early in the film where he and Cooper end up in the back of a dump truck with hay and manure, which they were not able to do with a straight face.
Other reviewers may comment about the anachronistic fashions on screen. Yes, Ann Dvorak's character seems to wear clothing and sport a hairstyle that belongs to the early 1930s, not the late 1910s. However, I think we can overlook some of these historical goofs, when the end result is so much fun to watch.
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