A rookie flyer, Ens. Alan Drake, joins the famous Hellcats Squadron right out of flight school in Pensacola. He doesn't make a great first impression when he is forced to ditch his airplane and parachute to safety when he arrives at the base but is unable to land due to heavy fog. On his first day on the job, his poor shooting skills results in the Hellcats losing an air combat competition. His fellow pilots accept him anyways but they think he's crossed the line when they erroneously conclude that while their CO Billy Gray is away, Drake has an affair with his wife Lorna. Drake is now an outcast and is prepared to resign from the Navy but his extreme heroism in saving Billy Gray's life turns things around.
Direction
Borzage squeezes genuine emotion from cardboard archetypes.
Practical Effects
Real Naval aviators risking necks for your entertainment.
Acting
Red Skelton's comic relief lands better than expected.
Director
Frank Borzage
Robert Taylor
Ens. Alan Drake
Ruth Hussey
Lorna Gray
Walter Pidgeon
Squadron Commander Billy Gary
Paul Kelly
Lieut. Cmdr. 'Dusty' Rhodes
Shepperd Strudwick
Lieut. Jerry Banning
Red Skelton
Lieut. 'Mugger' Martin
Nat Pendleton
C.P.O. 'Spike' Knowles
Dick Purcell
Lieut. 'Stichy' Payne
William Tannen
Lieut. Freddy Townsend
William Stelling
Lieut. Bush
Stanley Smith
Lieut. Frost
Addison Richards
Vice Admiral
Donald Douglas
1st Duty Officer
Pat Flaherty
2nd Duty Officer
Forbes Murray
Captain
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
The 'Hellcats' nickname and insignia were invented for this film; the Navy later adopted them for actual fighter squadrons.
Released November 1940, this is Hollywood bracing for war while still officially neutral—note how Gray's sacrifice mirrors British 'few' mythology already circulating.
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