{"id":2896,"date":"2007-04-04T14:22:41","date_gmt":"2007-04-04T21:22:41","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=2896"},"modified":"2021-01-26T17:56:01","modified_gmt":"2021-01-27T00:56:01","slug":"only-angels-have-wings-1939","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=2896","title":{"rendered":"Only Angels Have Wings (1939)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>&#8220;It&#8217;s like being in love with a buzzsaw.&#8221;<\/strong><\/p>\n<table>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Poster.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Poster-190x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"190\" height=\"300\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-22755\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Poster-190x300.jpg 190w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Poster-81x128.jpg 81w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Poster-648x1024.jpg 648w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Poster.jpg 730w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 190px) 100vw, 190px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Synopsis:<\/strong><br \/>\nWhile waiting for her boat to sail from the South American town of Barranca, showgirl Bonnie Lee (Jean Arthur) falls for the head (Cary Grant) of a small postal flying company. Meanwhile, Grant&#8217;s old flame (Rita Hayworth) appears with her new husband (Richard Barthelmess), who is reviled by his fellow pilots for having bailed out of a plane and left his co-pilot &#8212; brother of Grant&#8217;s best friend, &#8220;The Kid&#8221; (Thomas Mitchell) &#8212; to die.\n<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p>\n<strong>Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Airplanes and Pilots<\/li>\n<li>Cary Grant Films<\/li>\n<li>Expatriates<\/li>\n<li>Howard Hawks Films<\/li>\n<li>Jean Arthur Films<\/li>\n<li>Love Triangle<\/li>\n<li>Machismo<\/li>\n<li>Rita Hayworth Films<\/li>\n<li>Romance<\/li>\n<li>South and Central America<\/li>\n<li>Thomas Mitchell Films<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>\n<strong>Review: <\/strong><br \/>\n<em>Only Angels Have Wings<\/em> &#8212; made during <a href=\"http:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Hollywoods-Golden-Year-1939-Anniversary\/dp\/0312033613\/ref=sr_1_1\/103-4222177-8621445?ie=UTF8&#038;s=books&#038;qid=1175748590&#038;sr=8-1\">what is generally cited as Hollywood&#8217;s finest year, 1939<\/a> &#8212; may not be as famous as <a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=41976\"><em>Gone With the Wind<\/em><\/a> or <a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=3361\"><em>The Wizard of Oz<\/em><\/a>, but remains a highly enjoyable romantic adventure flick. Cary Grant and Jean Arthur are excellent in the lead roles, and exhibit genuine screen chemistry together: Arthur is both strong and sexy (convincingly playing a woman who finds herself smitten despite her better judgment), while Grant &#8212; performing his <em>34th role<\/em> in just seven years of filmmaking &#8212; perfectly embodies Hawks&#8217; masculine ideal. Notice how he strides away from emotional situations without hesitation, and justifies the death of his colleague by stating flatly: &#8220;Joe died flying &#8212; that was his job. He just wasn&#8217;t good enough; that&#8217;s why he got it.&#8221; <\/p>\n<p>The supporting performances in <em>Only Angels Have Wings<\/em> are uniformly excellent as well. Rita Hayworth is appropriately seductive in her first major role (though she doesn&#8217;t appear on-screen all that often); Thomas Mitchell (who co-starred in no less than <em>five<\/em> noteworthy films in 1939) is sympathetic as an aging pilot who is losing his sight; and former silent-screen-star Richard Barthelmess is perfectly cast as a pilot hoping to redeem his past cowardly actions. <\/p>\n<p>Although the film&#8217;s Oscar-nominated special effects don&#8217;t come across as all that impressive today, the actual footage of planes flying over the Andes is thrilling, and conveys both the danger and the excitement of this risky job. Note that <em> &#8230; Angels<\/em> bears some resemblance to <a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=5660\"><em>Casablanca <\/em> (1942)<\/a>: both center on ex-patriates who frequent a special bar; both feature a man who has become embittered by love; and both tell the stories of people whose survival is inherently dubious.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Redeeming Qualities and Moments: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Cary Grant as Geoff<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Grant.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Grant-1024x667.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"417\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-46700\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Grant-1024x667.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Grant-300x195.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Grant-128x83.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Grant-768x500.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Grant.png 1479w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Jean Arthur as Bonnie Lee<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Arthur2.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Arthur2-1024x654.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"409\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-46706\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Arthur2-1024x654.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Arthur2-300x192.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Arthur2-128x82.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Arthur2-768x491.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Arthur2.png 1513w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>A chilling portrayal of the dangers of flying<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Flying.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Flying-1024x650.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"406\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-46702\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Flying-1024x650.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Flying-300x191.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Flying-128x81.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Flying-768x488.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Flying.png 1513w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Thomas Mitchell as &#8220;The Kid&#8221;<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Mitchell.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Mitchell-1024x651.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"407\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-46701\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Mitchell-1024x651.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Mitchell-300x191.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Mitchell-128x81.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Mitchell-768x489.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Mitchell.png 1517w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Arthur taking over a jazz tune on the piano, and showing off her chops<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Arthur-Playing.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Arthur-Playing-1024x637.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"398\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-46704\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Arthur-Playing-1024x637.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Arthur-Playing-300x187.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Arthur-Playing-128x80.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Arthur-Playing-768x478.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Arthur-Playing-1536x956.png 1536w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Arthur-Playing.png 1551w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Joseph Walker&#8217;s cinematography<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Cinematography.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Cinematography-1024x657.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"411\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-46705\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Cinematography-1024x657.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Cinematography-300x193.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Cinematography-128x82.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Cinematography-768x493.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Cinematography.png 1535w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Andes.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Andes-1024x661.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"413\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-46703\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Andes-1024x661.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Andes-300x194.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Andes-128x83.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Andes-768x496.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/04\/Only-Angels-Have-Wings-Andes.png 1513w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Must See? <\/strong><br \/>\nYes. This film perfectly embodies many of Howard Hawks&#8217; favorite themes: machismo, male bonding, and women who struggle to understand their men&#8217;s need for adventure. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Categories<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Important Director<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p> (<span style=\"color:red;font-weight:bold;\">Listed in <a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-static\/1001Movies.htm\"><em>1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die<\/em><\/a><\/span>) <\/p>\n<p><strong>Links: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/imdb.com\/title\/tt0031762\/\">IMDb entry<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/1939\/05\/12\/archives\/the-screen-in-review-howard-hawkss-only-angels-have-wings-reaches.html\">NY Times Original Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tcm.com\/tcmdb\/title\/27933\/only-angels-have-wings\/#articles-reviews?articleId=24063\">TCM Article<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/screened.blogspot.com\/2005\/11\/only-angels-have-wings.html\">Latin America on Screen Review<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;It&#8217;s like being in love with a buzzsaw.&#8221; Synopsis: While waiting for her boat to sail from the South American town of Barranca, showgirl Bonnie Lee (Jean Arthur) falls for the head (Cary Grant) of a small postal flying company. Meanwhile, Grant&#8217;s old flame (Rita Hayworth) appears with her new husband (Richard Barthelmess), who is reviled by his fellow pilots for having bailed out of a plane and left his co-pilot &#8212; brother of Grant&#8217;s best friend, &#8220;The Kid&#8221; (Thomas&#8230;<\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more\"><a class=\"btn btn-default\" href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=2896\"> Read More<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">  Read More<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2896","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-reviews"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2896","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2896"}],"version-history":[{"count":12,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2896\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":66215,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2896\/revisions\/66215"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2896"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2896"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2896"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}