The Dawn Patrol (1938)

77% of users liked it
(1,081 ratings)

This 1938 remake of Howard Hawks' 1930 film The Dawn Patrol is faithful to the original's basic plotline. The story is set during World War I; the scene is the French headquarters of the British Royal Flying Corps, 59th division. The corps is suffering heavy losses, a fact that ace pilot Courtney… More This 1938 remake of Howard Hawks' 1930 film The Dawn Patrol is faithful to the original's basic plotline. The story is set during World War I; the scene is the French headquarters of the British Royal Flying Corps, 59th division. The corps is suffering heavy losses, a fact that ace pilot Courtney (Errol Flynn) ascribes to the supposed ruthlessness of squadron commander Brand (Basil Rathbone). What the audience knows that Courtney doesn't is that Brand is distraught at losing his men, but is forced by his own superiors to push the pilots beyond their limits. After being accused day after day of being a butcher, Brand takes grim delight in turning over his command to Courtney. Soon Courtney finds himself enduring the "butcher" tag, especially after the younger brother of his best friend Scott (David Niven) is killed. To redeem himself, Courtney gets Scott drunk and takes his place in a suicidal bombing mission. Courtney is killed, Scott assumes command, and the cycle begins again. The extensive use of combat scenes from the original Dawn Patrol has led some viewers to assume that the 1930 version is the superior of the two. In fact, the remake is far better than the original on several counts, not least of which was the star power of Errol Flynn and Basil Rathbone in their third screen teaming. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Rating, Runtime: Unrated, 1 hr. 43 min.
Directed By: Edmund Goulding
Written By: Seton I. Miller
Genres: Drama, Action & Adventure, Classics

In Theaters: Dec 24, 1938 Wide
On DVD: Mar 27, 2007

Critic Reviews

John J. Puccio, Movie Metropolis
...surprisingly talky but entertaining, too, in a hammy, overstated, even corny sort of way.
John J. Puccio, Movie Metropolis
...camaraderie and dogfights and bombing runs and stiff upper lips.
Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews
Competent remake of the 1930 Howard Hawks film of the same title.

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Cast

            Errol Flynn as Capt. Courtney

            David Niven as Lieut. Douglas Scott

            Basil Rathbone as Major Brand

            Donald Crisp as Phipps

            Melville Cooper as Watkins

            Barry Fitzgerald as Bott

            Michael Brooke Jr as Squires

            Morton Lowry as Donnie Scott

            Peter Willes as Hollister

            Carl Esmond as Von Mueller

            Stuart Hall as Bentham the Singer

            James Burke as Flaherty the Motorcycle Driver

            Sidney Bracey as Ransom Brand's Orderly

            Herbert Evans as Scott's Mechanic

            Tim Henning
            
            George Kirby as Kirby the Orderly

            Anthony Marsh as Rutherford

            Leo Nomis as Aeronautic Supervisor

            Tom Seidel as Jones

            John Sutton as Adjutant

            Gordon Thorpe as Smythe

            Norman Willis as German Aviator

            Douglas Gordon as Orderly

            Hal Brazeale as Gregory

            Tyrone Brereton
            
            Gilbert Wilson as Moorehead
See full cast

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