Imagine this---it's 1937, and you can get from London to New York on the White Star Line of jets without stopping, unless of course you find a few delays on Cloud 9 to be stopping. Chorus girl Anna Lee has witnessed a murder, and a detective, the killer, and a blackmailer are also aboard, observing her. This plane is so glamorous, it has actual suites for its passengers, as well as a deck outside of the fast-moving air vehicle. Lee has stowed away on board, afraid of going to Scotland Yard on the fear she'll be made a suspect, and the detective secretly arranges for her to get the last available suite. There's also a saxophone playing brat on board who always ends up being around when danger is lurking, and he ends up being a hero of sorts.
The first third of the movie is actually deadly dull, but once the passengers are on board and the plane has taken off, it picks up a bit of speed. Then, it becomes an eye-rolling account of movie fantasy that could never happen in air traffic. The only thing it is missing is a pool! The killer is not afraid of taking others out to get to Lee, so a few other bodies line up along the way. And once the plane is halfway over the Atlantic, the whole passenger list is in jeopardy. Of course, detective John Loder makes a daring attempt to turn things around, and this sequence is so far out there, you can't help but laughing out loud. The site of Athene Seyler as the little saxophone player's aunt waking up in the middle of it is another moment of unintended hilarity. Of course, Anna Lee, whom audiences adored as Lila Quartermain on "GH" and the sweet Sister Margaretta in "The Sound of Music" (as well as the well-intentioned but nosy neighbor in "Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?") is strikingly lovely. Only 24 when this film came out, she had a nice if not star making career as a leading lady, and is utterly charming. Francis L. Sullivan made a career out of playing nasty villains, and this is one of the most dastardly. This is a major curio for fans of British cinema, and an interesting follow-up to "The Tunnel" and "Things to Come".
The first third of the movie is actually deadly dull, but once the passengers are on board and the plane has taken off, it picks up a bit of speed. Then, it becomes an eye-rolling account of movie fantasy that could never happen in air traffic. The only thing it is missing is a pool! The killer is not afraid of taking others out to get to Lee, so a few other bodies line up along the way. And once the plane is halfway over the Atlantic, the whole passenger list is in jeopardy. Of course, detective John Loder makes a daring attempt to turn things around, and this sequence is so far out there, you can't help but laughing out loud. The site of Athene Seyler as the little saxophone player's aunt waking up in the middle of it is another moment of unintended hilarity. Of course, Anna Lee, whom audiences adored as Lila Quartermain on "GH" and the sweet Sister Margaretta in "The Sound of Music" (as well as the well-intentioned but nosy neighbor in "Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?") is strikingly lovely. Only 24 when this film came out, she had a nice if not star making career as a leading lady, and is utterly charming. Francis L. Sullivan made a career out of playing nasty villains, and this is one of the most dastardly. This is a major curio for fans of British cinema, and an interesting follow-up to "The Tunnel" and "Things to Come".