description Only Angels Have Wings Overview
Howard Hawks’ *Only Angels Have Wings* (1939) is a classic wartime drama centered on a small aviation company operating out of Santa Monica, California. The film follows a team of pilots and their passengers as they undertake perilous rescue missions across the United States during the late 1930s. Starring Cary Grant and Jean Arthur, it’s notable for its adventurous narrative and exploration of themes like duty, sacrifice, and connection amidst chaos. It appeals to audiences interested in aviation history, classic Hollywood romance, and stories of heroism.
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
info Only Angels Have Wings Specifications
| Country | United States |
| Year | 1939 |
help Only Angels Have Wings FAQ
Where does Only Angels Have Wings actually take place?
Howard Hawks sets the film in the fictional port town of Barranca, a foggy South American stop for a dangerous air-mail service. It is not a World War II movie: Columbia released it in 1939, before the United States entered the war.
What job are Cary Grant and the other pilots doing in Only Angels Have Wings?
Cary Grant plays Geoff Carter, the hard-nosed manager of a small airline that flies mail through hazardous mountain weather. The drama comes from whether pilots will take off when fog, rain, and poor visibility make the run potentially fatal.
Why is Rita Hayworth important in Only Angels Have Wings?
Rita Hayworth plays Judy MacPherson, the wife of a pilot with a compromised reputation among the Barranca flyers. The film came early in Hayworth's major Columbia period, before her signature 1940s roles such as Gilda.
Is Only Angels Have Wings more like an aviation adventure or a romance?
It is both, but the aviation code of honor is the spine of the movie. Jean Arthur's Bonnie Lee gives the film its outsider perspective, while the pilots' fatalistic attitude toward flying gives the 121-minute story its tension.
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