ThiefHott Too much of everything

Breakinger A Brilliant Conflict

Catangro After playing with our expectations, this turns out to be a very different sort of film.

Marva-nova Amazing worth wacthing. So good. Biased but well made with many good points.

Son-of-WRA I love the silents because the story relies as much on motion, lighting, and mannerism as they do dialogue panels. This movie was excellent. Now the special effects get a pass because of the times but that is no reason to not spend about 100 minutes of your life enjoying this little gem. You are treated to the camaraderie of a group of cadets about to graduate from the United States Naval Academy, follow their career development through training in Florida and California, and witness two friends vie for the affection of a beautiful water skier. I found myself caring about the characters and in wonderment at a short visual history lesson on military technology of the time. I wish more movies were made this way.

JohnHowardReid Neither as interesting nor a quarter as splendid an entertainment as director George Hill's previous U.S.A. Armed Services effort, "Tell It to the Marines" (1926)! But it has its moments, particularly in the earlier scenes in which fascinating character actors like Sumner Getchell (as Kewpie), Gardner James (Specs), Carroll Nye (Tex) and Edward J. Nugent (Dizzy) are the center of attention. Novarro seems miscast as a naval flier, but at least Ralph Graves gives him a bit of a run, although he has to carry the burden of being a "bad" guy. Alfred Allen is excellent in a brief role as the admiral, while the lovely Anita Page holds down the main female role and makes her character's preference for our hero (instead of Mr. Graves) almost convincing. And director Hill certainly does make real good use of all his many fascinating real locations!

Michael_Elliott The Flying Fleet (1929) *** (out of 4) Good, if rather routine and predictable, drama about buddies Tommy (Ramon Novarro) and Steve (Ralph Graves) who are trying to earn their wings in the Navy but along the way they fall in love with the same woman (Anita Page) and it starts to ruin their friendship. Screenwriter Frank Wead was well known off the camera and most people remember him today for being played by John Wayne in THE WINGS OF EAGLES but he'd also write several screenplays including the one for THEY WERE EXPENDABLE. This here was his first screen writing job and while it's very routine and contains no shocks it does remain entertaining as it really comes off like a documentary. It really does seem as if Wead wanted to give people a good idea of what it was like being in the Navy in regards to what you have to go through, the comradery between men and of course their views on women. There's a funny bit where the men see Page in her bathing suit and say that's a great bit of seafood. What really makes this film work so well are the wonderful aerial shots including a couple terrific crashes. It seems all of these movies back in the silent era were trying to top each other in regards to their stunts and this one here is mighty impressive and just goes to show that CGI isn't needed. The ending is one people will see coming from miles away but the crash is quite tense as is the scenes in the water. Another plus are the three leads who are all in fine form. Both Novarro and Graves come across as real friends and their chemistry really jumps off the screen. Page is as beautiful as ever and comes across extremely charming. The three have no problems mixing it up and the supporting players are just as good. The one problem is that by even 1929 standards the love triangle is just too predictable and it really starts to drag the rest of the film down at times. With that said, THE FLYING FLEET is still worth checking out for the stars and stunts.

calvinnme MGM was one of the last studios to convert to sound, and this is one of their late silents. By 1929, studios could easily add synchronized sound effects and music scores to films. It was synchronized speech by identifiable individual persons that so grounded the camera and caused so many problems.This late silent, written by one of the founders of naval aviation, has a good if somewhat predictable story with some sound effects to accompany the flight and naval action scenes. The story opens on six graduating seniors at the Naval Academy on the eve of their graduation. The six have been the best of friends for four years, and all six want wings, but only two will make it all the way through. The other four don't make it for a whole number of reasons from being expelled on the eve of graduation, to something as simple and unpreventable as bad eyesight. The last two not only get their wings, they are competing for the affection of a young lady (Anita Page) who lives in San Diego.It's got plenty of action and moves along nicely and absolutely could not have been shot as a sound film for at least a couple of more years when sound technology could finally go outdoors - and in the air - with ease. It's ironic that one of the first of these sound films, 1931's "Dirigible", also stars Ralph Graves playing the same kind of swaggering character that he does here.