Review of Only Angels Have Wings (1939) by Cassian J — 02 May 2008

This is a film I had no previous knowledge of but enjoyed anyway. Though it is very much a movie of itâ??s time and you probably have to be a fan of older black and white movies to enjoy it.

The basic premise of the movie is that of a female musician Bonnie Lee (Jean Arthur) who arrives in a South American port and ends up meeting a bunch of pilots headed up by the head of the airline Geoff Carter (Cary Grant) and gets involved with them as they fly their missions through a life threatening mountain pass.

Whilst the attitudes to work and relationships have clearly dated badly with time it is still a fine film with both the leads giving good performances and some solid direction too.

The inevitable romantic liaisons between the lead characters plays well as does the supporting story of a pilot who has previously shown cowardice finding redemption from his fellow pilots.

A good if not great movie that is well worth giving a chance. I would watch it again though I am not sure how many times.