"hello, santa."Pre-Code Ford's Only Angels have wings (Hawks stole a few things from here). Pilots flying mail out of a tiny, snowbattered airport... stubborn and selfish. Ralph Bellamy, straight-laced airport manager warned not to fly because of his eyesight. But of course, when a pilot crashes, he’s the first to take to the skies. Pat O’Brien, morally flexible flyer who has a habit of showing off and causing trouble, especially with the widows of downed pilots, definitely a pre-code film. Pretty fun clash of personalities. The aerial stunts are the real showstoppers. That hangar scene!! pilot flies through a hangar... not once, but twice. These early aviation films weren’t afraid to put people in real danger to get a shot. (I still need to see Hell's Angel.) Plot-wise, it's all over the place, especially in the last act where Duke ends up rescuing Mike from a mountain crash... the “moral of the story” looks a bit messy... heroism.. responsibility... they’re all mixed up. Plus not a cheerful Christmas story... Mike is supposed to play Santa for kids, and it just doesn’t go well. Unexpected christmas film. Love 30s obsession with aviation and gangster films.⏩ john ford, ranked
