Ladies Coragious
Hay I saw B-17s, C-47s, B-25s, AT-6s, P-40s, B-24s, and a B26. That's why I watched the film in the first place - to see now vintage aircrafts.
The rest of the film was very much like a soap opera.
Loretta Young was stately and beautiful. She did a creditable job with a lacking script.
Frank Jenks was annoying. His part could have been played by a younger actor.
The reminder of the actors did their best with what they had.
7 Reviews
Ladies Courageous - more like Tramps in Planes - a disgrace to the women pilots
tamrak58-114 July 2009
Warning: Spoilers
This film, unfortunately, is a disgrace to the WAFS/WASP women who flew for the military during WWII. After being depicted in Ladies Courageous as sluts and emotionally disturbed nut cases who steal airplanes to commit suicide -- the REAL women fliers during WWII were looked down upon and scorned. They were often accused of only signing up to serve their country so they could "get a man".
One thing the movie is good for is that it was filmed on location at Long Beach Army Air Field in California so what you see in the film is the actual Pilot's Ready Room and the real WAFS barracks etc. Other than that this movie is a sad commentary on how women were seen through the eyes of the American film industry during WWII.
One thing the movie is good for is that it was filmed on location at Long Beach Army Air Field in California so what you see in the film is the actual Pilot's Ready Room and the real WAFS barracks etc. Other than that this movie is a sad commentary on how women were seen through the eyes of the American film industry during WWII.
May contain spoiler information
hannah678629 April 2009
Warning: Spoilers
Women entered the work force during WWII. Some did so out of necessity, some did so out of patriotism and the women who were WASPS, women pilots, flew because they loved to fly. They were fiercely patriotic women who dared to dream of flying.
I am helping one of these wonderful women prepare stories from this period (she is in her 90's). I am so proud to know her and have a chance to help compile this tiny bit of history. This movie was made and used as a propaganda movie by the "good old boys" as a way to get rid of women pilots. It made them appear like tramps. This is far from the truth. It did, unfortunately, work. The WASPS were deactivated as Congressmen were told to watch the movie, as if it were a documentary on the behavior of the girls. These women braved the unimaginable at this time in our history. They are heroes to every young woman who has a dream. This movie slanders their memory and service. It trivializes their bravery and service.
Some of these ladies died.
One of the jobs was to serve as a "tow target." That meant they flew with a big bullseye behind the plane so BOYS could get target practice. Too honorable and dedicated to reject such a foolish job, they did it. They were helping! Young girls of today have no comprehension how hard their grandmothers fought to give them the opportunities they have today. Someday, soon, I hope, they will remake an accurate form of this movie -- while some of these treasures are still alive. (Very few WASPS are still alive.) I was incredibly sad to see the summary of this movie, saying how it helped the "war morale." War is hell, but to use a movie as a vehicle to trash this group of brave women makes me sick. Would somebody please re-make this movie? Tell the REAL story of dedication, hard thankless service and sometimes death.
My old friend actually started to cry when she told me Hollywood made a movie alleging they were all tramps. It always seems strange to hear an old woman to use those words. Yet, she was once a young woman -- she was one of the first women pilots in the world -- 21 years old with the wind blowing through her hair - literally. This was not done to get a man. They had to be perfect and "the best," because they had to prove themselves. I also could not believe that Congresmen watched this movie as "evidence" of how the women pilots behaved. It could not be farther from the truth. Remake time! Please!
I am helping one of these wonderful women prepare stories from this period (she is in her 90's). I am so proud to know her and have a chance to help compile this tiny bit of history. This movie was made and used as a propaganda movie by the "good old boys" as a way to get rid of women pilots. It made them appear like tramps. This is far from the truth. It did, unfortunately, work. The WASPS were deactivated as Congressmen were told to watch the movie, as if it were a documentary on the behavior of the girls. These women braved the unimaginable at this time in our history. They are heroes to every young woman who has a dream. This movie slanders their memory and service. It trivializes their bravery and service.
Some of these ladies died.
One of the jobs was to serve as a "tow target." That meant they flew with a big bullseye behind the plane so BOYS could get target practice. Too honorable and dedicated to reject such a foolish job, they did it. They were helping! Young girls of today have no comprehension how hard their grandmothers fought to give them the opportunities they have today. Someday, soon, I hope, they will remake an accurate form of this movie -- while some of these treasures are still alive. (Very few WASPS are still alive.) I was incredibly sad to see the summary of this movie, saying how it helped the "war morale." War is hell, but to use a movie as a vehicle to trash this group of brave women makes me sick. Would somebody please re-make this movie? Tell the REAL story of dedication, hard thankless service and sometimes death.
My old friend actually started to cry when she told me Hollywood made a movie alleging they were all tramps. It always seems strange to hear an old woman to use those words. Yet, she was once a young woman -- she was one of the first women pilots in the world -- 21 years old with the wind blowing through her hair - literally. This was not done to get a man. They had to be perfect and "the best," because they had to prove themselves. I also could not believe that Congresmen watched this movie as "evidence" of how the women pilots behaved. It could not be farther from the truth. Remake time! Please!
Two steps forward....and two steps back!
planktonrules3 August 2016
The title "Ladies Courageous" is obviously inspired by the 1930s MGM film "Captains Courageous". However, instead this is the story of a group of women volunteers who served the armed forced by ferrying airplanes from the States to where ever they were needed--thus freeing up men to do the actual fighting. While the film is SUPPOSED to celebrate these women and SHOULD have been an advancement for the cause of equal rights, in many, many ways it seems to have the covert message "women really AREN'T as qualified as men". Why? Because too often these supposedly professional women act as if their every action is governed by feelings or raging hormones. Now don't get me wrong...I do NOT agree with this at all...but the film seems to constantly reinforce this idea because these supposedly smart women often act awfully dumb...and it's up to their Colonel (Loretta Young) to continually pick up the pieces and try to make the best of the many disasters caused by some of the women--particularly the Colonel's nutty sister. A truly weird film and one that should have inspired....not inspired laughter!
Hollywood's idea of what women can do for the war
luciensmith12 March 2007
Warning: Spoilers
I almost saw this movie at The Library of Congress last week, but...
However, I did somehow stumble on this review from Time Magazine from 1944! Since there are no other comments, I thought I would add it here, sort of a public service, or something! My rating may be a bit generous.
The New Pictures Monday, Apr. 03, 1944 Four Jills in a Jeep (20th Century-Fox) and Ladies Courageous (Universal) are Hollywood's idea of what women can do for the war and painful examples of what Hollywood, under the pressure of patriotism, can do to women. In the first, Hollywood vigorously shakes its own hand for letting some actresses go to shake a leg on the world battlefronts. In the second, Loretta Young, Geraldine Fitzgerald and Diana Barrymore pilot planes around the U.S. The Jeep bounces Carole Landis, Kay Francis, Martha Raye and Mitzi Mayfair through a catch-as-catch-can cineversion of Miss Landis' book (and Satevepost articles) of the same title, reporting their experiences as USO entertainers. In the book, only Miss Landis got married. In the picture, Martha Raye, the feminists' Joe E. Brown, practically ingests the comic sergeant (Phil Silvers) who chauffeurs their jeep. Mitzi Mayfair snuggles up to a uniformed ex-vaudeville partner (Dick Haymes, who is Fox's threat to Frank Sinatra, and sings like melting vanilla ice cream). Kay Francis plays handles with an English Army doctor who utters the stunning gallantry : "If I'd held this hand ten years ago I might have a full house now." Miss Francis just laughs. In Britain and Africa, the cinemactresses clearly enjoyed themselves, worked hard, and brought some pleasure to places where it was needed. But not much of the reworking of their travelogue is fun to see or hear. Ladies Courageous comes in on a shattered wing and an unanswered prayer, noses over, and spills out a motley set of WAFS (see cut, p. 94) who later become WASPS. This whole covey of highly burnished cinemactresses looks more like Wam-pas cuties than like aeronauts. Judging by their actions, they cannot be trusted to pilot a perambulator, much less a B17. Miss Barrymore philanders with another WAF's husband; his wife remorsefully crashes her plane. Miss Fitzgerald, a neurotic, embarrasses her sister, Director Young, by making a hot landing (for publicity purposes). But she compensates for that by all but killing herself and another WAF in two other planes. Loretta Young comforts her warmly: "You tried!"
One wag emerged from the preview with a theme song for the girls: The men will forgive us (The ones that outlive us) No matter how often we fail. Who cares what trees-in The plane falls that she's-in. She's got a sting in her tail.
However, I did somehow stumble on this review from Time Magazine from 1944! Since there are no other comments, I thought I would add it here, sort of a public service, or something! My rating may be a bit generous.
The New Pictures Monday, Apr. 03, 1944 Four Jills in a Jeep (20th Century-Fox) and Ladies Courageous (Universal) are Hollywood's idea of what women can do for the war and painful examples of what Hollywood, under the pressure of patriotism, can do to women. In the first, Hollywood vigorously shakes its own hand for letting some actresses go to shake a leg on the world battlefronts. In the second, Loretta Young, Geraldine Fitzgerald and Diana Barrymore pilot planes around the U.S. The Jeep bounces Carole Landis, Kay Francis, Martha Raye and Mitzi Mayfair through a catch-as-catch-can cineversion of Miss Landis' book (and Satevepost articles) of the same title, reporting their experiences as USO entertainers. In the book, only Miss Landis got married. In the picture, Martha Raye, the feminists' Joe E. Brown, practically ingests the comic sergeant (Phil Silvers) who chauffeurs their jeep. Mitzi Mayfair snuggles up to a uniformed ex-vaudeville partner (Dick Haymes, who is Fox's threat to Frank Sinatra, and sings like melting vanilla ice cream). Kay Francis plays handles with an English Army doctor who utters the stunning gallantry : "If I'd held this hand ten years ago I might have a full house now." Miss Francis just laughs. In Britain and Africa, the cinemactresses clearly enjoyed themselves, worked hard, and brought some pleasure to places where it was needed. But not much of the reworking of their travelogue is fun to see or hear. Ladies Courageous comes in on a shattered wing and an unanswered prayer, noses over, and spills out a motley set of WAFS (see cut, p. 94) who later become WASPS. This whole covey of highly burnished cinemactresses looks more like Wam-pas cuties than like aeronauts. Judging by their actions, they cannot be trusted to pilot a perambulator, much less a B17. Miss Barrymore philanders with another WAF's husband; his wife remorsefully crashes her plane. Miss Fitzgerald, a neurotic, embarrasses her sister, Director Young, by making a hot landing (for publicity purposes). But she compensates for that by all but killing herself and another WAF in two other planes. Loretta Young comforts her warmly: "You tried!"
One wag emerged from the preview with a theme song for the girls: The men will forgive us (The ones that outlive us) No matter how often we fail. Who cares what trees-in The plane falls that she's-in. She's got a sting in her tail.
A pretty bad movie
richard-178718 December 2016
As the three previous reviewers have indicated, this is a pretty bad movie. Whether it is true that it was actually made to make the WASPS look bad, as claimed by one of those reviewers, I don't know. But it is certainly true that it makes some of the women pilots look selfish, over-emotional, etc. I don't ever recall once hearing any of the men in the movie comment on how good the women were at their job.
It's strange, frankly, that Hollywood would bother to make such a poor movie during the war. I just finished reading *Hollywood Goes to War*, which recounts how the Office of War Information (OWI) worked with the studios to put a positive face on just about every aspect of our involvement in the war - not always successfully, granted. It seems hard to imagine that Universal - which generally made horror flicks and musicals - would intentionally set out to scuttle the WASPs. But then, it also seems strange that Universal managed to get Loretta Young, then a big star, to appear in one of their movies.
I suspect there is some untold story here behind all this.
Nonetheless, this is a pretty poor movie. Unless you have an interest in seeing World War II aircraft, there's really not much point in watching it.
It's strange, frankly, that Hollywood would bother to make such a poor movie during the war. I just finished reading *Hollywood Goes to War*, which recounts how the Office of War Information (OWI) worked with the studios to put a positive face on just about every aspect of our involvement in the war - not always successfully, granted. It seems hard to imagine that Universal - which generally made horror flicks and musicals - would intentionally set out to scuttle the WASPs. But then, it also seems strange that Universal managed to get Loretta Young, then a big star, to appear in one of their movies.
I suspect there is some untold story here behind all this.
Nonetheless, this is a pretty poor movie. Unless you have an interest in seeing World War II aircraft, there's really not much point in watching it.
Hard To Watch This One
hogwrassler12 April 2021
I am usually fairly charitable to flag waver movies made during WWII. Their purpose was more to demonstrate the sacrifice of our military and keep up the morale of the folks on the home front, than to entertain. I just watched LC on a DVD I bought off of eBay. It was hard to sit all the way through. It's more bad soap opera than flag waver. While the movie tries to show the bravery and sacrifice of the Women's Air Service Pilots (WASPs) it deals primarily with the emotional problems of the various women.
Loretta Young is well cast as Roberta Harper, the mother hen leader of the civilian female pilots. Geraldine Fitzgerald is her famous pilot sister, Virgie, who is as reckless as she is outspoken. Anne Gwynne, June Vincent, Diana Barrymore, and Evelyn Ankers, and a few others round out the female cast. The full cast is a large one and look fast for some soon to be familiar faces in small walk-on roles.
Virgie is so upset about the women not being military officers and not getting the recognition they deserve, that she deliberately crashes a badly needed P-38 as a publicity stunt. That's the sort of immature and over emotional reactions that these women demonstrate. Not exactly the sort of thing to inspire confidence as to what good pilots they are supposed to be. Roberta deals with all the others' problems while keeping her own inside. The flag waving gets lost amidst all the female turmoil going on.
LC is also hindered by the stilted way that Geraldine Fitzgerald and Diana Barrymore deliver their lines. They both sound more British than the All-American girls they are supposed to be portraying.
About 80 minutes into the movie, I thought it might have risen to at least be mediocre. Then came the ending. It is the most contrived Hollywood far-fetched ending that it could possibly be. The ending actually destroys whatever positive points that had been made bout the WASPs in the story. I won't spoil it, all I can say is that you have to see the ending to believe that's what the script writers came up with.
Loretta Young is well cast as Roberta Harper, the mother hen leader of the civilian female pilots. Geraldine Fitzgerald is her famous pilot sister, Virgie, who is as reckless as she is outspoken. Anne Gwynne, June Vincent, Diana Barrymore, and Evelyn Ankers, and a few others round out the female cast. The full cast is a large one and look fast for some soon to be familiar faces in small walk-on roles.
Virgie is so upset about the women not being military officers and not getting the recognition they deserve, that she deliberately crashes a badly needed P-38 as a publicity stunt. That's the sort of immature and over emotional reactions that these women demonstrate. Not exactly the sort of thing to inspire confidence as to what good pilots they are supposed to be. Roberta deals with all the others' problems while keeping her own inside. The flag waving gets lost amidst all the female turmoil going on.
LC is also hindered by the stilted way that Geraldine Fitzgerald and Diana Barrymore deliver their lines. They both sound more British than the All-American girls they are supposed to be portraying.
About 80 minutes into the movie, I thought it might have risen to at least be mediocre. Then came the ending. It is the most contrived Hollywood far-fetched ending that it could possibly be. The ending actually destroys whatever positive points that had been made bout the WASPs in the story. I won't spoil it, all I can say is that you have to see the ending to believe that's what the script writers came up with.
See also
Awards | FAQ | User Ratings | External Reviews | Metacritic Reviews
