Parachute Jumper

This pre-Code film is as all over the map as Bette Davis's awful attempt at a southern accent. It has elements of comedy, romance, aerial stunt work, and the cynical disillusionment that sprung from the Depression. While far from perfect in any of those areas, there's a certain appeal to the grab bag Alfred E. Green packed in to 72 minutes, and I have to say, it never got boring.

If you hadn't seen the release date and were wondering if the film was pre-Code or not, that's put to rest in the very first shot, an extended close-up of a "Nicaraguan" woman's butt swinging back and forth to tropical music. Despite Davis's character remaining "respectable" after she begins living with her male friends (Douglas Fairbanks Jr. And Frank McHugh), there are some other fun little pre-Code bits sprinkled in, including some random things like a toilet flush and a middle finger being extended. My favorite was a rich lady (Claire Dodd) having her new chauffeur (Fairbanks) turn around once more so that she can unabashedly ogle him up and down.

The other high point for me was the way disillusionment over the time period crept in to the script, but never kept the film from playing as light entertainment. The young couple steal a wrapped-up fish from an alley cat, and condiments from a diner. She resorts to flirting to get a job, likening what she said as no more meaningful than promises politicians make. Behind the closed door of the office of the Society for Enforcement of Prohibition, we find a guy drinking. Lastly, we get this exchange between Fairbanks and a prospective employer, morals going out the window out of necessity:

"Do you care what you do?" "If I get paid, I work." "Do you object to cracking, or I should say, denting the law a little here and there?" "What law?" "The one we all laugh at."

Unfortunately, for all of these little bits and some interesting biplane stunts, the film as a whole doesn't come together. Perhaps the biggest issue was that Davis's character wasn't given a lot of sizzle to her personality, and the romance with Fairbanks felt a little tacked on. It's also one of the worst performances I think I've seen from her, and I love her older films, like Three on a Match (1932) and Ex-Lady (1933). Aside from the accent, she seems unsteady, and at one point even flubs a line, saying "typewriter massages" instead of "typewriter messages." Meanwhile, the plot meanders randomly, and not enough is made out of the entanglement with organized crime to be completely satisfying. An interesting curio though.

Parachute Jumper (1933)

*** (out of 4)

Fun pre-code from Vitaphone about pilot/friends Bill (Douglas Fairbanks, Jr.) and Toodles (Frank McHugh) who finds work hard to come by once they're back in the real world. They take in a woman (Bette Davis) also in a bad situation but all three eventually find work for a businessman who just happens to be bringing illegal alcohol into the States via planes. PARACHUTE JUMPER is everything you'd want from a "B" movie of this era. It features some laughs, some romance and some great action scenes. It contains a wonderful cast. It also has some amazing stunt work that can only be found in films of this era. Best of all are some pre-code moments including the highlight of the film when McHugh is trying to hitchhike by the guy doesn't stop so McHugh just stands there giving him the middle finger!!! This is certainly a film that classic movie fans are going to love for all of these reasons. It runs a very fast-paced 71-minutes and there's really no downtime to be found because everything is just happening so fast. Fairbanks, Jr. and McHugh are both in fine form delivering the type of performances that you'd expect. Davis also gets to play a sweet Southern lady but also brings out some fire at times. The supporting players include a nice, sexy role for Claire Dodd and Leo Carrillo plays the gangster. Some of the best moments happen early on during some very dangerous stunt work where a man has to climb on the wing of one plane and then walk onto the wings of another. Even today these scenes make you hold your breathe. PARACHUTE JUMPER has pretty much been forgotten over the years but fans of the "Golden Age" pre-code should enjoy it.

Hardly a classic but great fun - infectious fun. Doug Fairbanks and Frank McHugh seem to enjoy themselves so much, you can't help but smile along with them. From reading this picture's scenario, you'd never guess but it's a lovely upbeat picture essentially just about a couple of guys making the best out of life despite of The Depression. These two aren't going to let anything as trivial as mass unemployment and poverty get them down!

Can I be a bit more specific than describing it just as 'fun' - what type of film is this? Other than saying a romance - action adventure - gangster - aviation - comedy - social drama - love triangle and anything else you can think of..... the easiest description is a '1930s Warner Brothers picture.' Although they seem to be making the script up as they go along, it's actually well written, witty and quite cohesive inasmuch that whatever story it feels like being at the time, it's always about the unflappable optimism of these two likeable guys.

This cinematic equivalent of 'a greatest hits compilation album' is both completely forgettable yet also instantly familiar. It's like meeting an old friend, having a great time with them but not actually being too sure who it actually is.

This pre-code movie stars Douglas Fairbanks Jr. and Bette Davis as two victims of the Depression. It starts out with Bill (Fairbanks) and Toodles (Frank McHugh) being thrown out of the military for gallivanting with women when they should have been reporting back to a base. It is the wrong time to be discharged though; it is very hard to find work even as ex-pilots. Bill meets up with a beautiful stenographer named Patricia (Bette Davis) and the group teams up to find work and take care of each other. Slowly, they get involved in seedier and seedier jobs as their stomachs rumble and find themselves entangled in a dope ring.

A clip from this film was used in Whatever Happened to Baby Jane? to show off "Jane's" bad acting, but Davis does well in this movie. She's great at delivering snappy lines and proving that you don't have to be dumb to be beautiful. Fairbanks is the same way, nice to look at but good to listen to as well. McHugh adds flair to the film with his distinct personality which makes him perfect for the best friend part.

This film is fast paced and enjoyable, perfect for a slow day.

PARACHUTE JUMPER (1933), famously singled out by Bette Davis as one of the awful films she was required to make in the early years of her Warner Bros. contract, certainly isn't anything substantial. But it's a surprisingly fun Pre-Code flick.

The movie is carried by its three stars: Douglas Fairbanks Jr., Bette Davis, and Frank McHugh. Fairbanks in particular gives a winning, charismatic performance. Fairbanks and McHugh play a couple of ex-airmen who are desperate for work during the Great Depression. They're so broke that they take turns wearing one suit of clothes.

Fairbanks hops around from job to job, from aerial stuntman one day to chauffeur the next, ultimately getting mixed up with rum-running gangsters. (This is a Warner Bros. film, after all.) McHugh has less luck finding employment. Davis, playing an out-of-work stenographer called "Alabama", uses a Southern accent throughout. (Why not?) Fairbanks invites Davis to share the apartment he's got with McHugh, and the three become one little happy family, cheering each other on and scraping around to put food in their stomachs.

Fairbanks and McHugh play off each other well as the two buddies. Miss Davis is young and blonde and sweet and pretty, and fits in nicely with the boys. Her great acting triumphs were still to come, but she's always a pleasure to watch (even in films she despised).

There are a few Pre-Code touches that stand out to the trained observer. Firstly, the sound of a toilet flushing (before Hollywood was forced to ignore the very existence of toilets). There are also a couple of rather amusing (if homophobic) scenes where Fairbanks and McHugh joke around in "sissy" voices. And when a car passes by when Frank McHugh is thumbing for a ride, he gives the driver an entirely different hand gesture.

As far as 70-minute Pre-Code films go, PARACHUTE JUMPER is rather enjoyable. The story isn't very deep, but it's not exactly something you've seen before. Fairbanks, McHugh, and Davis seem to have a good time. There's biplanes and booze, gangsters and guns, good girls and shady dames, romance and wisecracks, and even some parachute jumping. The movie's got just about everything, and it's all rather fast-paced and light-hearted. A good time.