Sky Bandits (1940) User Reviews

Mad scientists over the Yukon.

[mark.waltz · 4/10 · 24 August 2022]

The character played by Joe De Stefani isn't exactly a mad scientist, but his invention is mad, a contraption that stops plane engines in mid-air. He's unaware that he's being utilized as a tool to steal gold, and it's up to Renfrew (James Nevill) to save the day before there's any other disasters. Even the pet rabbit of Dwight Frye gets nuked to death by the radio operated ray which results in murder and sets up the hero to save the day.

De Stefani is established as a decent man who is forced to remain under the thumb of the villains for his participation in the accidents that have already happened. Louise Stanley plays his pretty daughter caught up in all this intrigue, wanting to turn in the criminals but threatened with arrest herself for being an accessory. Apparently a remake of a Tim McCoy western, this reminds me of the Bela Lugosi serial "The Phantom Creeps" which came out the year before. Regardless, it's still very different for a Renfrew film, pretty silly and easily forgettable, with Nevill getting to sing three songs.

A rip-off of an already bad film.

[planktonrules · 2/10 · 21 March 2022]

I am a big fan of Tim McCoy films. He was an excellent actor and I have seen just about every film available. However, despite being a fan, I must admit that his 1936 film "Ghost Patrol" is just awful...the worst film I've seen. Amazingly, the plot was stolen by another production company and remade as "Sky Bandits" only four years later. You'd think that if they were going to do something like this that they'd steal a GOOD script!!

This Renfrew of the Mounties film is bad. As I mentioned above, much of it is its reliance on an already bad story idea (one that, incidentally, was also used in at least one serial)....but it also was hard to enjoy thanks to some godawful supporting characters. Renfrew's partner and comic relief was about as welcome and funny as Ebola and every time he appeared on screen I felt irritated. I felt about equally annoyed with the very hard of hearing fellow...who kept appearing again and again...even though he was simply annoying. As a result, there wasn't much for Renfrew to do but try to get noticed...mostly unsuccessfully.

The plot involves a professor and his device to knock planes out the sky...and an evil gang's using him for their evil ends. It all seemed very farfetched and silly. And, the film simply was a chore to finish.

Well used plot is given new life and plenty of laughs as the Mounties battle gold hijackers

[dbborroughs · 8/10 · 28 November 2005]

One of the last Renfrew of the Mounties films starring James Newill is a fun Mounties meet sci-fi mix.

The plot concerns a gang of hijackers shooting down gold planes in the great wilds of Canada. Renfrew and his buddy Constable Kelly have been assigned to try and find out what is happening to the planes which are disappearing with no trace. Renfrew's boss suspects that the pilots are stealing the shipments and flying them over the border. Renfrew thinks that something more sinister is transpiring. Renfrew is of course right and soon he has locked horns with the gang of bad guys who have moved from using bullets to bring the planes down, to using a ray that burns out the plane's engine.

This is grand Saturday afternoon style adventure. Nominally a western without the cowboys this film is an action packed romp from start to finish as horses are often used to get from place to place. Actually the western connection is even closer with this being the second remake of Tim McCoys Ghost Patrol (Its also far superior to that earlier film).

This is a great movie with many things going for it.I like that everyone in this film is a character of some sort and manages to make an impression on you as being an individual at some point in the film. The wise cracks are funny. The action is well done. Its also great to see Dwight Frye playing the extremely tightly wound inventor of the engine stopping ray.

If the film has any real flaw is that Renfrew bursts into song about three times too often. The songs actually aren't bad, they are good in a corny sort of way, they just stop the action from moving for the two or three minutes that they are sung. Keep the remote handy and you'll be okay.

Definitely worth a bag of popcorn and an hour of your time.