The Dawn Patrol (1938)

British flying aces in World War I contend with the harsh realities of war.

Director:

Edmund Goulding

Writers:

Seton I. Miller (screen play), Dan Totheroh (screen play)

Stars:

Errol Flynn, Basil Rathbone, David Niven

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Errol Flynn	...	Courtney
Basil Rathbone	...	Major Brand
David Niven	...	Scott
Donald Crisp	...	Phipps
Melville Cooper	...	Sgt. Watkins
Barry Fitzgerald	...	Bott
Carl Esmond	...	Hauptmann Von Mueller
Peter Willes	...	Hollister
Morton Lowry	...	Donnie Scott
Michael Brooke	...	Capt. Squires
James Burke	...	Flaherty
Stuart Hall	...	Bentham
Herbert Evans	...	Mechanic
Sidney Bracey	...	Major Brand's Orderly (as Sidney Bracy)
Leo Nomis	...	Aeronautic Supervisor

Storyline

In 1915 France, Major Brand commands the 39th Squadron of the Royal Flying Corps. The young airmen go up in bullet-riddled "crates" and the casualty rate is appalling, but Brand can't make the "brass hats" at headquarters see reason. Insubordinate air ace Captain Courtney is another thorn in Brand's side...but finds the smile wiped from his face when he rises to command the squadron himself. Everyone keeps a stiff upper lip.

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Plot Keywords:

suicide mission | fighter pilot | burning airplane | uniform | british soldier | 

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Taglines:

They roared through the dawn . . . with death on their wings !

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Genres:

Drama | War

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Did You Know?

Trivia

This film, as with the original, was based on the short story, "The Flight Commander" by John Monk Saunders."The Dawn Patrol" is the title of the section in which both the Scott brothers go up.

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Goofs

The amount of engine oil on Flynn's face.

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Quotes

Capt. Courtney: Man is a savage animal, who, periodically to relieve his nervous tension, tries to destroy himself.

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Connections

Referenced in Twelve O'Clock High (1949)

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Soundtracks

Plum and Apple
(uncredited)
Traditional
Sung a cappella by Errol Flynn, David Niven and James Burke

User Reviews

Great WW1 drama

Great WW1 flying drama.

A remake of Howard Hawks' "The Dawn Patrol" (1930) (sometimes known as "Flight Commander"). Not sure why it needed to be remade - it was great as it was.

This version doesn't add anything. Plot is almost to-the-letter identical to the original. Flying sequences and cinematography here are about as good, even though this movie was made 8 years later.

Not that there's anything wrong with this movie. Still a very gritty and accurate look at life, and death, in a Royal Flying Corps (RFC) fighter squadron. Details fairly well the burden of command, of sending pilots to almost certain death.

One area where this version trumps the original is in the performances. The original's performances weren't bad, but weren't great either. Here the performances are superb, especially from Errol Flynn, David Niven and Basil Rathbone.

As said, not sure why this was (re)made, but a great movie nevertheless.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English German

Release Date:

24 December 1938 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Dawn Patrol

Filming Locations:

Palmdale, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

103 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1