Flight Into Darkness (1935)

Charles Vanel and Annabella star respectively as a daring WW I aviator and his loving but neglected wife. Ostracized by the other pilots because of his recklessness and standoffishness, ... See full summary »

Director:

Anatole Litvak

Writers:

Joseph Kessel (novel) (as J. Kessel), Joseph Kessel (adaptation) (as J. Kessel)

Stars:

Annabella, Charles Vanel, Jean Murat

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Annabella	...	Hélène / Denise
Charles Vanel	...	Le lieutenant Maury
Jean Murat	...	Le capitaine Thélis
Jean-Pierre Aumont	...	L'aspirant Jean Herbillon
Daniel Mendaille	...	Deschamps
Raymond Cordy	...	Mathieu - l'ordonnance
Suzanne Desprès	...	Madame Herbillon (as Suzanne Despres)
Alexandre Rignault	...	L'amant de la patronne
Pierre Labry	...	Marbot
Geo Laby	...	Mézières (as Géo Laby)
René Bergeron	...	Fortin (as Bergeron)
Jean Heuzé	...	Berthier (as Jean Heuze)
Roland Toutain	...	Narbonne - un aviateur
Yves Forget	...	Un officier
Serge Grave	...	Georges Herbillon

Storyline

Charles Vanel and Annabella star respectively as a daring WW I aviator and his loving but neglected wife. Ostracized by the other pilots because of his recklessness and standoffishness, Vanel nonetheless befriends a young pilot who is in love with Vanel's wife.

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Plot Keywords:

french military | warplane | world war one | train station | spy plane | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Details

Country:

France

Language:

French

Release Date:

16 October 1938 (USA)

Also Known As:

Flight Into Darkness

Company Credits

Production Co:

Pathé-Natan

Technical Specs

Runtime:

111 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Photophone)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Connections

Remade as The Woman I Love (1937)

User Reviews

Litvak's unjustly ignored work

Anatole Litvak's work is huge:there are German,French and American productions in an uneven filmography.Most people know for sure "Anastasia" "snake pit" and the suspenseful "sorry wrong number".His "Mayerling" was superior to Terence Young's .The weakest works came at the end of his career:"nights of the generals" "aimez-vous Brahms" or le couteau dans la plaie" are dreadful stuff.

"L'equipage" belongs to his first French period.It has been wonderfully restored and the pictures are sometimes really stunning.Litvak takes a subject as old as the hills (a love triangle) and succeeds in grabing the viewer.It takes place during WW1 .Two pilots team up (the title means "the crew");one of them is his pal's wife's lover.

The score is lovely featuring Chopin and French old military songs like "auprès de ma blonde" .

Remarkable sequences: the soldiers leaving for the war ,on a train ;the stifling atmosphere of the honky-tonk where girls dance FRench cancan;and above all (no pun intended),all the scenes in the sky where Litvak uses the planes,the submachine guns and the clouds with great skill.The last scene when the clouds turn black as Aumont is dying is still impressive by today's standards.

Fine performances by Charles Vanel (the husband)and Jean-Pierre Aumont (the lover).Annabella (who would become Tyrone Power's wife ),even by today's canons is still photogenic which is not the case of many actresses of the thirties.

NB:Aumont and Annabella were reunited in Marcel Carne's "Hôtel du Nord" but that time,they were out-shadowed by the supporting cast,Arletty and Louis Jouvet.