Bailout at 43,000

Formula test pilot story with the usual plot of the pilot(s) possibly losing their nerve. Why is every test pilot movie from this period always written that way? Probably because the Hollywood writers know that they themselves don't have the nerve to be an Air Force pilot. I agree with them.

John Payne is good as usual, though his role is lackluster. Paul Kelly is fine as the flight test commander, and beautiful Constance Ford is reliable as one of the pilots' wives.

Only a couple of drawbacks..... there's a touch of an unnecessary racist element, and the film moves slowly for the most part.

Tragically, Barbara Eden is only in this movie about 10 minutes, but when she walks into a room all of the other women seem to evaporate. It's easy to see how she would become a great star later. Study her acting, facial expressions and voice. Truly a young star.

This is a pretty good Air Force movie. It revolves around the development and testing of a downward acting ejection seat for high speed to jet aircraft.

I will admit my bias because I find Barbara Eden one of the most attractive women ever to grace Hollywood. She's in the same class as Sophia Loren.

If you like other movies of this genre you won't be disappointed.

Plot-- A married, reservist Air Force officer is called back to duty to help test a new bailout system for a high-flying bomber. It's hazardous duty, causing his wife consternation and himself doubts about his courage.

Pine-Thomas was a well-established production company, so it's not surprising that this is a well-made little feature. The acting is quite good, especially from Payne and Kelly, whose relationship of commander and subordinate is a complicated one. And that's along with utility actor Eddie Firestone, who may not look the part but manages real grit. Also, it looks like filming was done on location with no cheesy studio effects. Thus we get a look (I think) at the Naval Air Station's Parachute Unit shared by the Air Force in California's Imperial Valley. At least, IMDb lists the Valley as location site.

Though made at the height of the Cold War, the narrative's emphasis is on professionalism of the individual rather than patriotism of the flag. Can Maj. Peterson (Payne) still measure up to the confidence Col. Hughes (Kelly) has in him. After all, he now has a wife and son to be concerned about. So which duty has priority. My only gripe is with actress Steele as the Major's Marilyn Monroe wife. She performs well enough, but they've glamorized her to a phony Hollywood degree that she even cooks in high heels! Then too, the bingo game for officer's wives looks like an assembly of fashion models. I guess the producers felt there was an important public image to project.

Anyway, the movie exceeded expectations, given the title. And though dated in many respects, facing up to challenge is a trans-generational theme, as relevant now as it was then.

I haven't seen this film since 1957, and have been looking for it ever since. As there is no other information posted, I will report from memory (I was 11 years old at last viewing). This is a story about Air Force researchers trying to develop a safe ejection system for the new B-47 bomber. The navigator position required a rather unique ejection out the bottom of the aircraft. Added to this were the new human physiology problems of a man leaving a pressurized aircraft at extremely high altitude.

That's all I can remember. I've long thought it would be an interesting account of the development of new flight technology. John Payne was nearing the end of his film career at this time and about to go into television with "The Restless Gun," so this was probably a fairly low budget movie. The Air Force of course cooperated fully in movies like this in the interest of a larger share of the defense budget, so everything shown in the film is real, no cheesy miniature effects.

Bailout At 43000 is a reasonably well made and competent film about the Air Force that stars John Payne, Karen Steele, and Paul Kelly in what turned out to be his farewell performance. It's all about the testing of a new type of ejector at the high altitudes and speeds that jets were making in those Fifties years. The film follows in the tradition of such Air Force films as Strategic Air Command, The McConnell Story, and most of all the William Holden starring film Toward The Unknown which came out the year earlier.

For reasons that are never explained Payne who has been recalled to active duty for this project has folks worried about whether he won't crack up. In the Holden film, Holden had been a prisoner of war in Korea and was tortured so the apprehensions were understandable. But in this film, it's never developed why people are so concerned about Payne. Their fears lead Payne to be concerned about himself and of course his spouse Karen Steele plays right into it.

That's the reason I don't rate Bailout At 43000 higher than I do, an incoherent plot. Otherwise the film is a fine B feature with some great scenes of Air Force life. As I've written in other film reviews, the Air Force was only in existence for a decade at this time and films like this and others I've mentioned were great recruiting tools for the new service.

Let's say that Payne proved he had the right stuff and let it go at that. Bailout At 43000 is a decent film that could have been rated higher with a better script.