Lost in the Stratosphere

This is one of those "woman comes between two pilots" pictures. There were about fifty of them it seems in the 1930s alone. James Cagney's little brother plays one of the pilots. It's a part very similar to those Jimmy was playing around this time, albeit with less charisma and energy. The hilarious part about this love triangle is the woman was cheating on one guy with the other, yet the film still builds the entire plot around which guy gets her like she's a prize. A bit like winning a dollar in the lottery if you ask me.

The characters here are not particularly likable or fun, despite acting like they think they are. You would be forgiven for thinking the military was one big college fraternity with how immature these guys act. Just a bunch of horny doofuses whose superiors seem tickled by it all. I usually enjoy aviation-related movies from the first half of the twentieth century. Those are my favorite parts of this movie. That and the rain. I assume the rain in this is legit. If not they deserved a special Oscar for creating realistic rain effects.

William Cagney and Edward J. Nugent are Army Air Corps fliers, who compete over girls by playing tricks on each other/Towards the end they settle on fighting over June Collyer.

Clearly Monogram thought they might catch lightning in a bottle by hiring Jimmy cagney's brother. While he does look a lot like his more famous brother, he is a much lower energy performer, and the resemblance hurts the movie. Nugent seems present to offer a sort of Chester Morris vibe to the production. In fact, this looks like a lot of other early 1930s military buddy movies, but the low-rent leads lack much in the way of star power, and the adventure ending has the pair in a balloon -- I suppose Monogram couldn't afford to rent a dirigible.

WIlliam Cagney made only five movies before he became a producing partner for brother Jimmy. He died in 1988, aged 82.

There really are only two reasons to see this slight B-movie. First, if you are curious to see Jimmy Cagney's brother (William) act, this is one of the few films he made before becoming an agent. Second, if you are really excited by aviation and ballooning, then you might find this of some interest. Otherwise, the film simply isn't good enough to go out of your way to see it and it is, at best, a time-filler.

William Cagney plays a somewhat obnoxious aviator (Soapy Cooper). He spends most of the film trying to steal girls away from his VERY unfortunately named friend (Dick Wood). However, this plot seems lifted from a Jimmy Cagney film and William's screen presence just isn't as good--though he bears a pretty close resemblance to his famous brother.

Oddly, late in the film, Soapy falls for a lady who is, unknown to him, Dick's fiancée. Dick gets all bent out of shape and this spoils their friendship--though the film seriously neglects one VERY important point. How can Dick be so outraged when he, himself, has been chasing skirts throughout the film!? In other words, though secretly engaged to a lady, he is constantly chasing any lady who breathes! Nice guy, huh?! It all works itself out (naturally) in the end and according to a tried and true formula, all are friends and the credits roll.

Strengths are the ballooning segments and,....well,... nothing else. Deficits are pedestrian writing and acting as well as a formulaic plot that makes little sense at times.

This is a reasonably good B-feature that combines some light comedy with some romantic melodrama. It moves slowly at times, and doesn't always fit together, but it has some redeeming features.

The story concerns two military pilots, one played by William Cagney, who looks very much like his brother, but who never manages quite the screen presence. The two work together on a lot of hazardous assignments, and when on the ground find themselves in constant competition over women. For much of the film, they simply play practical jokes on each other in their rivalries over women. Much of it is predictable, but often amusing anyway. Then things get more serious, when one of the pilots cannot forgive the hurt caused by one of these romantic misfires, and just afterwards they must go on an especially hazardous mission together.

It's nothing special, but there's probably enough here to make it worth a try if you enjoy 30's-style movies.