FLYING LEATHERNECKS

US, 1951, 102 minutes, Colour.
John Wayne, Robert Ryan, Janis Carter, Don Taylor, Jay C. Flippen, William Harrigan, James Bell.
Directed by Nicholas Ray.

Flying Leathernecks is one of many John Wayne war films. He was seen to best effect in this role in The Sands of Iwo Jima (1949) for which he won an Oscar nomination.

The film is of interest as a John Wayne vehicle of the early 50s. He is presented as the head of a Marine fighter squadron in the South Pacific and is a strict disciplinarian. The men react to his severity, especially his leading officer played by Robert Ryan. As one might expect, the war sequences bring out the best in all the men and they discover the meaning of discipline and its effect on warfare and their saving their lives.

While the material is conventional and very much to the liking of John Wayne, the film is of interest as a Howard Hughes/RKO production directed by Nicholas Ray. Ray had made some impact with his early films including They Live By Night. He was to have a chequered career but has been well regarded by critics and admirers. He participated in an autobiographical study by friend Wim Wenders, Lightning Over Water. The screenplay was by James Edward Grant, a friend of Wayne's who wrote many of his vehicles including The Angel and the Bad Man (1947) which he also directed.

A typical war film of the '50s -? in memory of American heroism in the war and for morale-boosting of the 50s. An interesting postscript for Nicholas Ray's career.