People are voting emotionally.

As Good As It Gets

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

Actress is magnificent and exudes a hypnotic screen presence in this affecting drama.

This slightly boring espionage thriller is short on both length and thrills but saved by several flying sequences where the murder of a scientist on his way to Washington D.C. is shown in flashback and later a chase sequence involving the good guys and the villains. The plot is as twisted as crash wreckage and the performance by leading hero Lyle Talbot so ineffectual that you long for either James Cagney or even George Brent in the lead. The unique looking Ann Dvorak is both feisty and sweet as the stewardess heroine girlfriend, but the lack of chemistry between the two is obvious. With the technical achievements overwhelming the acting and the script, I have to mark this as a disappointment.

Quicky 'B' picture (61") featuring now 2nd tier Stars of WARNER BROTHERS (W.B.). Lyle Talbot and Ann Dvorak were first rate Stars in the early days of the Sound-Era at the W.B. By 1934 they had fallen out of favor with Jack Warner, head of production at the Studio. Mr. Talbot because of his involvement with the Actors Labor movement. Ms. Dvorak because She felt over-used in trite material, complained too much and would not play casting-couch politics.MURDER IN THE CLOUDS (1934) is another of those Aerial Adventures all the studios cranked out, with RKO leading the pack. This time a new 'secret explosive' must be shipped by air too our Government. What is needed is crack pilot 'Three-Star' Lyle Talbot. '3'Star is waylaid by enemy agents, the explosive stolen and Judy Wagner's (Dvorak) Brother is killed along with the Government Agents. Have no fear, with the help of Wings Mahoney (George Cooper) taking time off from 'comedy relief' both the explosive and Judy are rescued. The Villains meeting their just rewards.Talbot's '3'Star is the typical overbearing ASS that was passed off as a 'hero' in that era. All of his irresponsible actions are forgotten and glossed over in the last reel. Dvorak only needs to look good and hit her mark, which She has no problem in doing. The Villains, Gordon 'Weasel' Westcott and ever dependable Russell Hicks are particularly ruthless. The murder of the Agents and Judy's Brother is merciless and as cold-blooded as you can imagine, told in flash-back. The film shows up on TCM and can be picked up either through www.oldies.com or at your local flee-market. Where I got my copy.

The airline in the film flies Ford Trimotors. One in particular, an AT-4, is identified: NC5578. Full details of the history of this aircraft can be found in the Davis-Monthan Aviation Field Register. It was apparently exported to Ecuador in 1945; there is no further information after that.Three Star flew a biplane, registration NC406N which would indicate it was a Travel Air D-4000. The company, founded in 1925, initially built a series of sporting and training open-cockpit biplanes, including the Model A, Model B, 2000, 3000 and 4000. It was forced into liquidation in 1929 and its assets were purchased by the Curtiss-Wright corporation, which continued to manufacture some of its designs.The airline company's base is said to be Los Angeles, but it doesn't look like that today.The main reasons for watching this film are the excellent flying and aerobatic sequences, and the extremely attractive Ann Dvorak who certainly knew how to act in this sort of film.

Murder in the Clouds (1934) * 1/2 (out of 4) Bob "Three Star" Halsey (Lyle Talbot) is suspended due to his dangerous stunts as a pilot but he's given a second chance when the government needs to transport a scientist carrying explosive material. Three Star gets jumped in a bar so that he misses the flight and the bad guys blow the plane up in order to get the material. This film has some of the biggest plot holes I've ever seen but the screenplay tries to explain them, which leads to one of the dumbest stories ever. There's one terrific bar fight but that's about all this film has going for it as Talbot is pretty poor here as is the supporting players.