Men of the Fighting Lady (1954) User Reviews

Men of the Fighting Lady

[dencar_1 · 7/10 · 12 March 2005]

MEN OF THE FIGHTING LADY is a very unglamorous, but very gritty Korean War aircraft carrier picture whose centerpiece--the episode of a jet fighter pilot blinded by gunfire and "talked" back to a safe landing--is a true account from a story by Harry A. Burns titled "The Case of the Blind Pilot." The secondary script source for the story line is author James Michener (TALES OF THE SOUTH SEAS, HAWAII, THE SOURCE) who is actually portrayed in the film by Louis Calhern.

The lives of jet fighter pilots aboard the Fighting Lady in the Sea of Japan and their treacherous missions to destroy key North Korean military installations serve as the exposition for this slice-of-life, often neglected chapter in American war history. The mood and atmosphere of the film contain an unmistakable Korean War grimness that clouds over the men from beginning to end as they cut through the harsh North Korean skies battling ceaseless anti-aircraft fire in mission after mission.

MEN OF THE FIGHTING LADY is unromantic and raw. It's theme is the harsh, day-to-day experience of jet pilots who flew their missions under the gloom of being shot out of the air. For it is well worth remembering that unlike Viet Nam and subsequent Iraq wars, Korean War bombing missions exposed pilots to blistering anti-aircraft fire and attacking enemy aircraft resulting in numerous pilot casualties and downed planes. Not to be forgotten is that the Korean War was the first, full-blown "jet aircraft war" in history.

The opening of the film begins with a nostalgic flashback over "ham and eggs" recalled by Louie Calhern who recalls the episodes aboard the Fighting Lady and the lives of heroic pilots during the Korean War conflict. The lives of the men and their interaction with their commanders lead to the film's signal sequence in which Ensign Kenneth Schecter (Dewey Martin) is strafed by enemy fire in his cockpit while on a mission and radios back that he is blind. Lt Thayer (Van Johnson) calms him and ultimately talks him back to a perfect landing aboard the Fighting Lady. In another moving scene at Christmas, the entire squadron watches movie footage of a pilot's wife sending her love to her husband---who had just lost his life on a mission.

Frank Lovejoy and Walter Pigeon are perfect fits as salty naval officers bearing up under the harsh war conditions in the Sea of Japan at that time. Former MGM musical comedy star Van Johnson is excellent as Lt. Thayer guiding the sightless ensign back in safely to the carrier deck. A young Kennan Wynn portrays the anxiety of a flight deck signalman very effectively.

There may have been better Korean War films--BRIDGES AT TOKO-RI, PORK CHOP HILL, RETREAT, HELL, but many of those fine films are packaged within romantic portrayals of war. MEN OF THE FIGHTING LADY has no romantic sub-plot, no love story, and, in short, no women. The film is superior in its depiction of the reality of a jet pilot's life walking the thin line between returning from a mission in one piece and facing annihilation. MEN OF THE FIGHTING LADY also contains effective and very real stock footage of jet take-offs and landings as well as North Korean targets under actual cannon fire from American sorties.

MEN OF THE FIGHTING LADY should be viewed by anyone interested in the true mood and atmosphere of the Korean War years when a jet pilot faced demise on every mission--and for the time in our nation's history when Starfighters and Scorpian jets ruled the skies over the Sea of Japan.

Trivia: MEN OF THE FIGHTING LADY should not be confused with the 1944 release THE FIGHTING LADY starring Charles Boyer and Robert Taylor. That film follows the exploits of the USS Yorktown.

Dennis Caracciolo

What's Really Meant By Flying Blind

[bkoganbing · 7/10 · 21 May 2007]

Though Men of the Flying Lady starts off slow it builds to a nail biting climax that will leave you on the edge of your comfortable sofa or Laz- E-Boy as the case may be.

The men talked about her are the pilots and crews of the fighter jets who flew from carriers during the Korean War. The Fighting Lady is the ship they operate from.

The source material for the plot was a couple of stories from the Saturday Evening Post about the war. The stories are not well integrated together, mainly because one is far stronger than the other.

The first story line is about Frank Lovejoy and his insistence on flying in low for accuracy in his bombing. The problem is that opens he and his group to risk. It's not exactly an original story, though Lovejoy does a fine job.

The second story is far better when Dewey Martin is wounded during a bombing run and is blinded. This one crackles with tension as his fellow pilot Van Johnson talks him down to if not a pretty landing on the carrier, one that leaves him breathing.

The story is told in a flashback by author James Michener who is played by Louis Calhern who had the stories related to him by Flight Surgeon Walter Pidgeon.

It can't be appreciated by today's audience the impact of having Michener be a character in the story. He was a hugely popular author back in the day and his Tales of the South Pacific was made into the classic musical South Pacific which was just ending it's mammoth first Broadway run right about the time Men of the Fighting Lady came out.

The cast does a fine job and if the stories are uneven, the film is still entertaining and informative if not quite up to the standards of The Bridges at Toko-Ri which dealt with the same area.

the real thing

[SnoopyStyle · 6/10 · 14 May 2020]

Author James A. Michener visits the aircraft carrier USS Oriskany during the Korean War. He is tasked to write the crew's Christmas story. He is brought to flight surgeon Kent Dowling who recounts the story.

Released a year after the war, this is adapted from a magazine story by Michener. The use of the real thing and some real footage helps heighten the intensity. Seeing the real thing is fascinating even all these years later. Seeing the real bombing runs must have been compelling back in the day. I do remember the plane explosive crash on the carrier deck from somewhere else. I wonder if this is where it came from. Otherwise, the story is simple and the characters don't really stand out. These are good character actors and they do a solid job. As for the climatic story, it's just not that dramatic. The drama is concentrated on the landing and it's not that in doubt.

Korean war film offers plenty of aerial battle footage and big name cast

[ma-cortes · 7/10 · 7 June 2022]

One of the finest of the Korea War films with dramatic airfights , following the hazardous exploits of a carrier and its crew . This action/adventure/War story is dedicated to the remarkable men who run the machines of war . It is based in events published in the Saturday Evening Post under the titles ¨The Forgotten Heroes of Korea¨ by James Michener and ¨The Case of the Blind Pilot¨ by commander Harry A. Burn USN. Regarding a famous writer , Louis Calhern as James A Michener , visits an aircraft carrier during the Korean war to learn more about it and the way it's run. He also gets to find out more about the Navy and Marine aviators themselves , their internal and external conflicts and dangers of their job . Torn out of a tortured sky !. M-G-M presents the heroic story of what happened to the Men of the Fighting Lady ! .No man is an island , entire of itself.. Any man´s death dimininishes me because I am involved in mankind and therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls -it tolls for thee -John Donne.

A Korean war drama movie with flag-waging American sentiment , thrills , emotion , dangerous aerial scenes , occasional drama , battle scenes and a lot of stock footage . Features the stories of selected pilots stationed on a US aircraft carrier in the Pacific during the Korean war . The stories told to Louis Calhern as writer James A Michener , centering around pilot Van Johnson and standing out his feat in which he helps a blinded Dewey Martin land his aircraft safely on the carrier deck . This is a powerful film competently directed by Andrew Marton and it displays extremely realistic aerial sequences , in fact this picture was made with the cooperation of the department of Defense and the United States Navy , with particular appreciation to Commander Air Force , US Pacific fleet and the officers and men of his command . This exciting and thrilling film focus on the group of pilots and their perilous missions on their planes . Gene Ruggerio's editing of the war footage was so expertly made that he was even questioned by the Pentagon when they had a hard time believing the scenes were achieved by skillful mountage and painted backdrops . This Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) (1954) production is a hell of a war movie , combining with some effective quiter moments . It is plenty of riveting technical detail and there's richly rounded support cast . There's also also an introspective real guy interfacing by the ensemble cast , as well as a nice group of actors giving fiercely well-defined portrayals of pilots and soldiers under stress , being masterfully played by a lot of familiar faces , such as : Van Johnson , Walter Pidgeon, Louis Calhern , Keenan Wynn , Frank Lovejoy, Robert Horton , Bert Freed , among others, and look for 'Beaver' Jerry Mathers as one of Keenan Wynn's sons.

It displays a moving and rousing musical score by classic composer Miklós Rózsa . It's all topped off with the vividly charming cinematography which typified the Korean war period from director of photography George Folsey . This propaganda and agreeable picture was professionally directed by Andrew Marton , and there this great filmmaker creates some nice aerial action scenes , as it has worn well through the years , in spite of the extremely jingoist and patriotist yarn . Marton's filmmaking is masterly in its economy , power and pace . Craftsman director Marton made a lot of films in all kind of genres and creating good works . Marton was a specialist on Wartime movies, such as : ¨The thin red line¨also based on James A. Michener movie , ¨The longest day ¨and adventure movies as ¨African Texas style¨, ¨Around the world under the sea¨, ¨Clarence , the cross-eyed lion¨, and ¨King Salomon's mines¨(1950) co-directed by Compton Bennett and Andrew Marton directed the second unit , he then was tasked with replacing Compton Bennett as director after the latter had been taken ill . One of his more prestigious assignments came about by chance to lay in some excellent work as second-unit director , notably in charge of the chariot race for William Wyler's ¨Ben-Hur¨ (1959), as well as of the Normandy invasion sequences for the World War II in the sensational ¨The Longest day¨(1942) . After his contract with MGM expired in 1954, Marton founded his own production company in conjunction with fellow Hungarian émigrés Ivan Tors and Laslo Benedek . He later concentrated on TV adventure series, helming the pilots, respectively for "Daktari" (1966) and "Cowboy in Africa" . Men of the Fighting Lady (1954) rating : 6.5/10 , better than average.

Starring the F9F Panther

[BCL1 · 22 June 2004]

The real stars of this movie are the beautiful Grumman F9F Panther jets that we get to see launching from and landing on the carrier. The plot is mildly interesting, but nothing special. It is based on a story written by James Michener for the Saturday Evening Post. "The Bridges At Toko Ri" which was released the following year starring William Holden, Grace Kelly and Mickey Rooney is a more compelling story of carrier jet pilots in Korea, but Men of the Fighting Lady has better footage of the planes themselves. This movie does help you appreciate the very real dangers faced by pilots landing jets on pitching carrier decks. As the admiral in The Bridges at Toko Ri put it, "Where do we get such men?"

Very good, though the film, like so many war films, depends on too much grainy stock footage.

[planktonrules · 7/10 · 22 November 2020]

"Men of the Fighting Lady" is a very good and highly unusual film. It's highly unusual because the screenplay is based on two different short stories by two different authors! And, even more unusual, Louis Calhern plays one of these authors, the famous writer James Michener. It's also a bit unusual because it's a Korean War film....and, oddly enough, Hollywood made very few Korean War movies.

The story is about a group of fighter-bomber pilots flying Panther jets from a US aircraft carrier. What happened to the men is described to Michener (Louis Calhern) by the ship's doctor (Walter Pidgeon)....a story about the pilots flying interdiction missions over Korea. The part of the story that is longest and most interesting is a true story of a pilot hit by shrapnel. The plan is badly damaged, he is blinded and he cannot eject...and another pilot trails him and talks him down onto the carrier deck!

The story is interesting and the acting quite good. But like too many war films, it's filled with lot of grainy stock footage that obviously doesn't fit. What's worse, occasionally it's VERY sloppy...such as when a dark blue Panther jet becomes a silver F-84 fighter plane! Another time, during a bombing run, a Panther becomes a WWII era propeller fighter, the F4U Corsair*! This is not only sloppy but insults the audience's intelligence.

Overall, worth seeing...despite the sloppy footage issue.



* To folks who know a ton about planes, yes I know that the F4U Corsair was also used in Korea....but a propeller fighter becoming a jet fighter...that's just stupid and obvious.

It's not what a man says; it is what he does.

[michaelRokeefe · 4/10 · 23 May 2003]

An average war action film about Navy pilots on a U.S. aircraft carrier during the Korean War. A very good cast that barely gains full throttle. The players include: Van Johnson, Walter Pidgeon, Frank Lovejoy, Keenan Wynn, Robert Horton, and Louis Calhern. And a cameo by six year old Jerry Mathers. A couple of tense scenes during this 79 minute film; but nothing real outstanding.

I knew the man

[deernest · 10/10 · 27 January 2005]

I was one of the few enlisted personal to be around Lt.Commander Grayson while we we're station at N.A.A.S. Chase field in Beeville,Tx from 1955-1957, I feel Frank Lovejoy played the part rather well, although Grayson was a might more demanding then was portrayed in the movie. When Kennan Wyan (Dobson) complained that 200 ft was to low for a strike,was funny,because Grayson would do barrel rolls at 100 ft.I think the movie was good and would love to find a DVD/VHF. The cast was great in the supporting role of the activity that went on around Grayson. I never knew Grayson to drink but then I didn't know him that well. Again Frank Lovejoy was "Stern", to the point and most of showed the courage and leadership of the "Man I Knew"

Routine Tale of Navy in Korea.

[rmax304823 · 5/10 · 25 June 2010]

A nice cast in a somewhat unimaginative film -- Van Johnson, Walter Pidgeon, Louis Calhern, Keenan Wynn, Frank Lovejoy. Calhern is James Michener, famed author of "Tales of the South Pacific," who visits an aircraft carrier during the Korean war, has the various devices and routines explained to him (and us), and is told a long story in flashback by Pidgeon, the Medical Officer.

Tales of the Aviators comes in two parts, it seems. The first two thirds of the flashback shows us the dangers of flight and the conflict between two kinds of personalities among the fliers. Keenan Wynne is 37 years old, a man who fought in World War II and feels he's already had his share of combat. He has a wife and several children at home. He questions the goals of the Korean conflict and is determined to "look out for Number One." He manages to convert young Dewey Martin but does nothing more than draw silent scorn from Van Johnson. Johnson believes that "a man has to do what he has to do." Or, to put it another way, "a man's gotta do what a man's gotta do."

If that sounds bromidic it's because it is. In fact, many of the lines and the ideas behind them ring hoary with age. Calhern: "I guess a man's life is a search for himself." What, exactly, is that supposed to MEAN? James Michener, on whose stories this film is based, is far too skilled to have written that sentence. And how about, "A man's gotta look out for himself cause nobody else will"? Or, "It's not what a man says, it's what he does"? Not that the dialog or the notions it's supposed to represent matters much. Nobody acts in accordance with their own credos. The cynical Wynn goes back to the danger zone to look for a comrade and nothing is made of it.

Things get more tense during the final third of the flashback, in which Dewey Martin is blinded by anti-aircraft fire over the target and must be guided back to the carrier and coaxed through a landing on the flight deck by Van Johnson. Neither actor seems to put much into it but the situation itself is so gripping that a viewer is drawn into the story. We've already seen one aviator crash and die during a landing, so we know that it can happen again.

I always thought those Grumman Panthers were beautiful airplanes, perhaps the last of the machines that actually LOOKED like a real airplane, with straight wings, an identifiable tail assembly, and the rest of the old-fashioned accouterments. I was thrilled in Monterey Bay, watching them practice touch-and-go landings on a carrier from the deck of another ship, all sleek and glossy blue. I never liked modern airplanes. They look either like fancied-up darts, some kind of flying bug, or a nightmarish origami. Pfui.

The flight scenes are still beautiful in this film but the moment the images shift from the Panthers that are flying around for the movie, to gun cameras or newsreel footage, the charm deliquesces. The editors and producers handle the ancillary footage clumsily. One moment a Panther dives in for an attack, then, in the blink of an eye, it becomes a propeller-driven Corsair. If a Panther cracks up on the deck, it momentarily morphs into a Douglas Skyraider before reverting to its designated form.

The movie is crowned with about ten loooong minutes of home movies that have been sent to the ship to be shown to the aviators on Christmas day. "Hello, darling. I can't wait for you to come back. I've been trying on wedding dresses. How about this one?"

Well? How about it?

Good photorealistic movie

[raskimono · 8/10 · 15 June 2004]

One look at the opening of this movie lets you know thta is not the work of MGM boss Louis B Mayer but his replacement Dore Schary whose job was to cut costs and make profits which MGM had stopped doing, leading in grosses but last in profits. Schary brought his penchant for reality with him starting with Battleground and once more here again. The star of the first is the star of the latter and by that I mean Van Johnson. This movie is about the Korean war which in the movie is referred to as a police action because an official war was never declared. True story taken from the Saturday Evening Post tells the tale of bomber planes on a Naval tanker during the war. It is very matter of fact with little plot but the lives of the men and their difficulty destroying a rail track that just seems to get rebuilt every time. Walter Pidgeon provides good support as the commander and everyone else is just fine and a thirty minute rescue scene is so impressive, it makes you wonder if this people had not been watching the Europen movies; the droll delivery, the spacial pacing, the voice over that is a third character, the actual footage of attacks because any attack or firing is actual footage. Fine movie all around that needs to be seen by more.

Tedious Korean War Film - Men of the FIghting Lady

[arthur_tafero · 5/10 · 17 September 2022]

Among the notable actors in this film are Van Johnson and Walter Pidgeon (of Mrs. Minerva fame). Unfortunately, Walter cannot reproduce his stellar performance from Mrs. Minerva; his extremely passive and understated style does not mix well with Van Johnson's intense approach. The story of pilots of machines destroying other machines is just plain tedious, with too much stock footage and a waste of the talented Miklos Rozsa's efforts for music background. There is just no chemistry in this film; and real war films have chemistry among the actors in the story. Johnson cannot rescue this mundane script script as well. I almost forgot Frank Lovejoy, which will tell you how effective his performance was.

Good action, sentiment, but a little trite

[Sleepy-17 · 10 February 2003]

Surprisingly enough, most of the action scenes were from real wartime footage which is incorporated very well, its reality adds to the suspense instead of subtracting. The fact that James Michener is one of the characters makes it more interesting, but there's just too much talk about bravery and duty to make this film really shine. Well worth watching, good stars, but not above the routine.

men find their true selves

[marcusd-2-47137 · 9/10 · 7 June 2011]

the thought rings true that men find their true selves on a carrier. Keenan Wynn's character espouses his opinions on their missions and how they're carried out. However he shows his true self. Van Johnson's and Frank Lovejoy's are consistent throughout the movie. Walter Pidgeon is the connecting thread. Bert Freed among others is excellent as the crusty aircraft mechanic, who supposedly cares more about his planes than the pilot who flies them. Frank Lovejoy is always a treat to watch. He's probably my second favorite character actor behind Ward Bond. Walter Pidgeon is a natural fit as the flight surgeon. Look for a young Robert Horton in a small role as one of the pilots. Dewey Martin has the meatiest role as Schecter, the blind pilot.

Great Movie!

[dbporte53 · 10/10 · 28 May 2005]

I really enjoyed this one. It is great to find another movie featuring the USS CV34 Oriskany in many of the scenes. I liked this movie even better than The Bridges Of Toko-Ri. It sends a great message about the pilots taking care of each other. Van Johnson's character didn't have to stay with his buddy, but showing what our pilots are really made of, he not only risked his own life to bring one of his own,disregarding his own safety, but got him back aboard in one piece. Even the flight chief changed his mind about the pilots taking "his" planes out and getting them shot up, He told Van Johnston that he didn't even care if they had lost both planes! Great movie! Smooth Sailing, Dale

Recruitment Poster

[inspectors71 · 29 May 2008]

If you don't mind mid-fifties melodrama, there's a whole lot of good action, suspense, and some nice, patriotic touches in Men of the Fighting Lady, an 80 minute long recruitment poster for being a fighter-bomber pilot, especially in an unpopular war. There's actually so much as-realistic-as-you-can-get-for-1954 action in the movie that the human element almost trips up the gun-camera footage of things being strafed and napalmed.

Yet, even if you find the talk-talk irritating (I didn't because it rang true), you can't dismiss the home movie sent to the air group on the carrier for Christmas or the blinded Panther pilot fumbling with a morphine syringe, trying to drive back the pain of his injuries so he can listen to his wingman talk him down.

I'd tune in the next time Turner Classic Movies shows Men of the Fighting Lady, and even if you don't believe in the Iraq War, you'll really get a taste of the flesh and blood reality of being a carrier pilot, dropping ordnance on things that don't seem particularly important to blow up.

Overall, good movie....except the Beav will always be the Beav

[david-hinman-1 · 24 March 2009]

Good flick. I DVR'd it the other week, watched it last night, and when the cast names appeared at the beginning, I was like, well now, all right! And not at all disappointed by the acting. With Van Johnson, acting was like falling off a log, always great. Dewey Martin was VERY convincing as a wounded pilot, just on the brink of passing out each minute during the return flight. This was the high point of the movie. I have never seen Keenan Wynn more appealing, as he usually plays over the top characters. This time he was very likable, and more importantly, he got across his message, which was very candid for its time. The message being that this was not a popular war, or even necessary, therefore heroics were not necessary. Motivation is very important when fighting a battle. Walter Pidgeon is always just pleasure to watch. Only thing I didn't like, was when watching the 'Christmas film', on comes the family of the just killed pilot, Wynn. This was a little over the edge, with all the cute little kids singing silent night, and clearly designed for some contrived tear coaxing. Plus, you knew it was coming. And, although back then it wouldn't have mattered, seeing Beaver Cleaver hamming it up on the clip was very distracting, actually funny. I kept waiting for Eddie Haskell to amble on in. Something about the ending was missing, but can't say what. Just found it empty. Great fun to watch though for a first time.

Actual talk-down sequences, excellent acting

[jandjstuart · 30 January 2012]

A thirty-ish Van Johnson as Lt. Howard Thayer is excellent in his talk-talk scenes with the blinded pilot, his friend Ken. Johnson's character is confined in the fighter pilot's seat, encased in flight gear and helmet, with the actor having only his voice and facial expressions to convey his depth of concern. The flying sequences have been very positively reviewed by veterans on a fighter pilots information sharing website, Korean War veterans sharing website, and military movie catalog website; always noted to be realistic. Actors dialog in the talk-down scene was transcribed from the actual pilots radio transmissions, with very few exceptions (actual is posted online). Bombing scenes are actual, but not graphic compared to modern special effects scenes. Should not be disturbing to younger viewers. Not a celebration of war, this film deals with loss of pilots lives, it's effect on friends and family. Touching but not soapy or sorrowful. The film has variety of action, and keeps moving along well. Noted to be the best Korean War action film, and Carrier film ever produced.