Ace of Aces

Idealistic young sculptor Richard Dix (as Rex "Rocky" Thorne) decides not to enlist when President Woodrow Wilson calls for US soldiers to enter the Great War (aka World War I). A pacifist, Mr. Dix explains, "I just don't like the idea of killing my fellow man." His pretty Boston fiancée Elizabeth Allan (as Nancy Adams) calls Dix a coward and joins the war effort as a nurse. Suddenly ashamed, Dix enlists as a fighter pilot. On his first day with the squadron, in France, Dix is sent out on a mission. At first he is unable to kill his fellow man. But, when shot at, Dix turns into the Germans' worst nightmare, killing them at breakneck speed. Soon, Dix holds the record for the most kills...

During the heat of battle, Dix and Ms. Allan find their views on war have evolved...

This is a fine 1930s (anti-) war film, with exciting airborne battle scenes. The photography, by Henry Cronjager and Vernon Walker, is a highlight. In the leading role, Dix seems miscast, however. Many older men enlisted in both World Wars, but he appears too old for the role. The script might have been altered to include some mention of him getting a late start in marriage and claiming to be "too old for war." Even then, the part probably should have been played by a more delicate actor. Best supporting player is Theodore Newton (as Foster 'Frogy' Kelley). His first scene, introducing Dix to the squadron, is so good you can almost hear director J Walter Ruben yell, "Cut, print!" Yes, he nailed it.

****** Ace of Aces (1933-10-20) J. Walter Ruben ~ Richard Dix, Elizabeth Allan, Theodore Newton, Ralph Bellamy

As America decides to enter WWI, an artist (Richard Dix) tells his patriotic girlfriend (Elizabeth Allan) that he objects to getting involved in a pointless war "like a lemming." Feeling guilty over her rebuke, he signs up, and after overcoming initial qualms about killing, quickly becomes the best fighter pilot in his squadron, having killed 43 of the enemy. When the pair happen to run into one another on a weekend pass he has in Paris, he tells her that he'll only spend the time with her if she'll have sex with him - that's what he's looking for from other women - and she reluctantly consents (certainly a pre-Code moment). He's gone through quite a transformation, oozing masculinity and aggression so much that even fighting seems to be mostly about personal glory, but he's shaken when he sees real suffering in the hospital, including a man he personally shot down.

The film has elements glorifying war, such as the ragtag fighter crew and their aerial exploits, but it also has elements condemning it, such as the men suffering cruel, lingering deaths, PTSD, and a suicide. Despite having secured an instructor's position, the man feels compelled to go back out and earn more kills to beat some other hotshot's record, something I initially thought might be a metaphor for humanity inevitably continuing the crazy cycle of warfare, but his subsequent actions show a nice (if rather forced) sense of enlightenment.

Unfortunately, despite all these great concepts, the film is rather clunky in its mechanics for delivering them. At times it feels abrupt and at others, confused. It needed some other element with an edge - someone bringing up how ridiculous this particular war was in the first place, a darker change in Dix's character, some kind of arc to Allan's character, or an ending that was less saccharine - to have truly succeeded. It could also have used a little more star power and flair in its performances. I liked the antiwar components and how they reflected the psyche of the country in between the wars, but this one was just average, and not terribly special.

Ace Of Aces casts Richard Dix as a sculptor who is determined just not to get involved in the war even after the USA enters. But those were jingoistic years and when his own girlfriend Elizabeth Allan shames him into it he joins the Army and gets into the new Army Air Corps.

Once he's involved Dix discovers he has a taste for war and gets real good at combat flying. Others who aren't as good get dead and soon. But he's taken up by the media and is soon like Eddie Rickenbacker, the Ace Of Aces. And Elizabeth Allan does not like what she sees when she visits the front doing war work.

Dix gives a fine performance, one of the best I've seen in his talkie period. Very good use is made of the combat footage. It might very well have been outtakes from Howard Hughes's Hell's Angels or Paramount's Wings instead of the real deal or a combination. Still it's effectively added in.

Kudos also go to Ralph Bellamy as Dix's immediate superior who doesn't like him and has him figured out very well. One big flaw is the film has an obviously tacked on ending.

Ace Of Aces still holds up well after eight decades and ranks up high with aviation themed films.

Plot in a Nutshell: Spurned by his lover for his pacifist views, a man (Richard Dix) enters the fray of WWI as a fighter pilot and becomes a one-man wrecking crew in the skies over France.

Why I rated it an '8': Several reasons. The anti-war sentiment of Rocky Thorne was an interesting centerpiece and serves to remind us that a fair percentage of the population wound up believing (in hindsight) that the U.S.'s involvement in WWI was perhaps not such a great idea after all (similar to Vietnam and the Iraq war). The pre-code hotel conversation between Rocky and Nancy certainly got my attention. In it, Rocky uses Nancy's words against her - "everyone should do their part" and "give what they can give" - in a successful seduction where Nancy gives in to his sexual demands, in essence as part of the 'war effort.' It does not endear one to Thorne, as he comes across as callous and manipulative, but it's something you wouldn't see in a film just a few years later I'm sure.

SFX were decent for the time period. The German character actually spoke German and/or broken English which was a realistic touch. My only real complaint is why Thorne swings from one extreme to the other without much prodding (pacifist to remorseless killer). The best one can say is perhaps 'kill or be killed' - perhaps - but of course he didn't need to enlist as a pilot in the first place. He could have been an ambulance driver like Ernest Hemingway and avoided the requirement to kill altogether. Even so, a pretty enjoyable pre-code WWI flick.

Best Line: Rocky Thorne (to Nancy): "Courage? At a time like this it takes courage to stick to one's principles."

Times watched: 1. Would I watch again (Y/N)?: Yes.

Rocky and Nancy, couple in love, when War is declared (WWI, in spite of their early 30s clothing). Rocky (played by Richard Dix) compares soldiers to lemmings "trying to reach a goal that doesn't exist" - Nancy (Elizabeth Allan) thinks her man is "yellow" as she pushes him into going to battle. Next thing you know, Rocky has joined an Aero Squadron and is encamped in a barracks full of nicknamed comrades and a menagerie of "mascots" not limited to a goat, pig, chimp, parrot, and Rocky's personal mascot, a cute little lion cub (actually, he looked sort of like a leopard to me). Rocky starts out fighting his morals against shooting another man - but not for long, it seems, as Rocky gets pretty darn aggressive amazingly quickly - the war has completely gone to his head as Rocky turns into the fighting ace of all aces!

This film is a bit hit or miss - parts of it are good, other parts are quite slow-moving and boring. Richard Dix gives a somewhat hammy performance and there are some pretty fake looking kisses between the two leads, a real lack of chemistry there, I would say. BUT - there is some interesting photography in the air battle scenes, and a few other interesting scenes here and there, especially notable is a scene where Dix is confronted by one of the German soldiers he shot down, now on his death bed. Okay film.