Main Cast: Mark Daniels, Lon McCallister, Don Taylor, Red Buttons, Jo Carroll Dennison, Edmond O'Brien, Geraldine Wall
Release Year: 1944
Country: US
Run Time: 130 minutes
Plot
Moss Hart's hit Broadway play Winged Victory was brought to the screen in 1944, with most of its original cast intact. The story, concerning regular Joes from all walks of life joining the Army Air Force, is secondary to such theatrical setpieces as a camp show wherein several virile Hollywood leading men cavort about in drag. As a break from the all-male atmosphere, Hart adds a scene in which several wives and sweethearts discuss their fighting men; among these ladies is 23-year-old Judy Holliday. Reflecting the fact that most of the cast was actually serving in the Armed Forces at the time of filming, many of the actors are billed with their rank included: Pvt. Lon McAllister, Sgt. Edmond O'Brien, Cpl. Lee J. Cobb, and so on. While the patriotic elements of Winged Victory have faded in the intervening five decades, the film is worth a glance for its heady cast lineup of celebrities-to-be, including Peter Lynd Hayes, Red Buttons, Barry Nelson, and future director Martin Ritt. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Review
A fairly obscure wartime picture (due to rights issues which kept it off the small screen and unavailable in home viewing formats for many years), Winged Victory is definitely propaganda, but it's much more palatable than most such efforts. Sure, there's a bit too much of a "gee whiz" to some of the dialogue and attitudes, and some of the speeches invoking Americana will prove dated and perhaps laughable to many modern viewers. But Victory has a sincerity to it that is hard to resist, and if Moss Hart's screenplay (based on his stage play) is manipulative, it also has a more than decent degree of imagination and features Hart's flair for dialogue and detail. George Cukor directs in a documentary style but finds plenty of room for drama; for someone known as a "women's director," he demonstrates a masculine edge here that proves he was more versatile than often acknowledged. The cast is in good form, although Lon McCallister perhaps tries a bit too hard. But it's a treat to see the likes of Red Buttons (in drag), Peter Lind Hayes and Barry Nelson so early in their careers. Edmond O'Brien and Lee J. Cobb are also quite good, but the best performance comes from a very young and affecting Judy Holliday. ~ Craig Butler, All Movie Guide
Frankie Davis (Lon McCallister), Allan Ross (Mark Daniels) and Pinkie Scariano (Don Taylor) join the U.S. Army Air Forces with hopes of becoming pilots. In training, they befriend Irving Miller (Edmond O'Brien) and Bobby Grills (Barry Nelson). The five friends go through the training process to become pilots, facing success, failure and tragedy.
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