Errol Flynn rears his gorgeous head in this military drama from 1941 where he plays a doctor in the air force hoping to come up w/a system so pilots won't black out (something that occurred w/some frequency) during flights where they'd contract altitude sickness. After a pilot dies from injuries sustained from just such a diagnosis, Flynn decides to enroll in aviation courses to better understand the effects of the phenomena abetting another researcher played by Ralph Bellamy. Reconnecting w/the friends of the deceased pilot, one played by Fred MacMurray, Flynn makes headway when they volunteer (after blaming him for the death of their friend) but when Flynn's theories bear fruit (as MacMurray's colleague is discharged for excessive fatigue only to perish flying for the Canadian air force), will his findings be implemented in time? When the film sticks to this particular malady pilots once faced, it soars (sorry!) but then Alexis Smith (who made a couple of films w/Flynn) shows up as the nominal love interest between Flynn & MacMurray & it seems director Michael Curtiz (directing Flynn for the 12th & last time here) got cold feet the audience wouldn't be engaged in its male dominated yarn, a shame.
Review of Dive Bomber
