The Crowded Sky

It has been a long time since I saw this movie but it is pretty good. I keep wondering why it and other airplane disaster movies have not been released on DVD. Another one I have looked for is Fate is the Hunter. Maybe it is because of 9/11. The airplanes are obsolete compared to the kind we fly in today but they are still good movies. The original airplane disaster movie (not just my opinion) is The High and the Mighty from 1954 I believe. Maybe it has been released due to the star being John Wayne. Talk about obsolete planes and the passengers in Hawaii having to go thru customs as Hawaii was not yet a state. It is still a great movie with a lot of suspense. The Crowded Sky is the same type of movie and should be released on DVD. What can I say, I like this type of movie.

One of the first modern day airline disaster movies, this 1961 film contains all the elements of suspense, humor and drama that one would expect of its genre. With the only drawback of a weak supporting cast, the story line is a solid one.

In this film, Efrem Zimbalist, Jr. plays a navy pilot on a collision course with a commercial jet piloted by Dana Andrews. Years later, in one of the later Airport series, the roles are reversed and Andrews plays the pilot of a small plane on a collision course with a commercial aircraft piloted by Efrem Zimbalist.

Troy Donahue does a creditable job as a young sailor hitching a ride with Zimbalist to get home. An interesting device in this film is the close-up thought technique, particularly when used with the character played by Keenan Wynn.

If you consider this film only among the other members of its generation, it comes out well.

Drama , emotion and tension in a hazardous voyage on a trans-airline flight . Disaster and nail-biting movie about a Navy jet and a commercial airliner heading for a mid air catastrophe , as passengers fasten your belts to a strong disaster . As a navy jet (piloted by Efrem Zimbalist Jr , Troy Donahue) with a defective radio system and a passenger plane (piloted by Dana Andrews , John Kerr) get in danger of collision. As crew , passengers (Keenan Wynn , Jean Willes , Joe Mantell , Patsy Kelly..) , flight attendant (Anne Francis) gripping their seats for the bumpy ride ahead . During the initial scenes , characters are shown describing some life scenes prior to boarding the airplane . And in flashbacks we learn about the personal problems of the pilots and most of the crew. From the suspense packed best seller and the great international tradition of ¨The High and the Mighty¨. The most fascinating people the gods of chance ever swept up into high adventure!

The picture contains drama , suspense , moderate tension and is quite entertaining although with some flaws and gaps .This is a predecessor in the "Airport" series that achieved splendor in the 70s and 80s . It's exciting and entertaining but heavily paced , full clichés and stereotypes with passable acting by all star cast , including a great deal of unexpected zooms . Based on the novel by Hank Searls and screenplay by Charles Schnee , it blasts to the screen with every kind of love , thrills , and intrigue . Plastic acting and stock characters detailing a hectic flight . The film is dealing with a tumultuous flight and the relationship among passengers . All clichéd and stock roles with regurgitation of all usual stereotypical situations from disaster films . This thrilling tale may remind some spectators ¨The High and the Mighty¨ written by Ernest Kann , directed by William A Wellman with John Wayne , to which , especially with its star-studded casting and plot , it bears a more than coincidental resemblance . It matches the notorious talents of prestigious actors , some of then old TV favourite as Efrem Zimbalist Jr. of 77 Sunset Strip against those of the more screen-seasoned as Dana Andrews , John Kerr , Rhonda Fleming . And a long support cast , such as : Keenan Wynn , Troy Donahue , Jean Willes , Troy Donahue , Joe Mantell , Patsy Kelly, Paul Genge , Donald May , Louis Quinn , among others

It contains a colourful cinematography in Technicolor , CinemaScope by Harry Stradling Sr . Emotive as well as atmospheric musical score by Leonard Rosenman . This old-fashioned motion picture was professionally directed by Joseph Pevney . The craftsman Pevney shot all kinds of genres as Comedy , Film Noir , Mystery , Drama , such as : ¨Who is the black Dahilia ?¨, ¨The strange door¨, ¨Man of a thousand faces¨, ¨Mysterious Island of beautiful women¨, ¨Cash McCall¨, ¨Tammy and the bachelor¨, ¨Istanbul¨, ¨Because of you¨ , and especially Wartime movies : ¨Torpedo run¨, ¨Away all boats¨ , and Westerns as ¨Night of Grizzly . At the end of his long career he made a lot of episodes of famous TV series , such as : High Chaparral , Rockford cases , Marcus Welby , Petrocellli , The Fugitive , Alfred Hitchcock presents , Executive suite , Mission imposible , Monster family , The loner , Star Trek , Virginian , Sam Cade , Bonanza . Rating : 5.5/10

Yes I loved it. What a gem of a movie.

I taped this just on a whim as it was on a very late night run here and I have to say I loved it. I found it a treat and a gem. My favourite part of the film is when a character is thinking out loud the camera focuses in on that person and the lighting around them dims as we head into their world either via voice over or a flashback scene.

I would not mind adding this movie to my collection if it ever comes out on DVD. This is one of the movies, no doubt that paved the way for movies like "Airport" and all those awful disaster movies of the 70s and 80s. Good going I'll give it 7/10

A commercial DC-6 with 62 passengers, flying too high due to the inexplicable actions of arrogant pilot Dana Andrews, is soon in the pathway of a two-pilot Navy jet that has lost all radio communications. The wooden performances and variable special effects of "The Crowded Sky" simply add to its kitsch factor; some audiences can't help laughing at it, but nevertheless enjoying themselves at the same time. The pilots and nearly all the passengers have a great deal on their minds, and the running theme of the close-up followed by the ominous voice-over followed by the flashback lapses into amusing self-parody. Handsome Warner Bros. production, with tidy airplane interiors and all the men wearing skinny black ties, provides instant nostalgia, while the overripe dialogue is frequently laugh-out-loud funny. **1/2 from ****