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Test Pilot Movie Review

Test Pilot is a 1938 drama film directed by Victor Fleming and starring Clark Gable, Myrna Loy and Spencer Tracy. It’s an entertaining, but far from great flick.

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“You’re a funny looking gazebo“

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It follows the life of a test pilot as well as his main friendship and romance. There is not much to this film in terms of substance. Apparently, the movie was valued very highly for realistically depicting the aircraft of its time and the many details surrounding them, but for somebody like me who isn’t really enamored with aircraft, it failed to garner much interest.

And that is the main issue of the film in a nutshell – it’s too meticulously detailed and way too action-oriented. The flying scenes aren’t adventurous as some would say, but are more action-heavy than anything else, preceding the many aerial blockbusters decades from its release. Every such scene really bored me.

There is one thing that this movie excels at and that’s characterization. Yes, all three of these characters are so well developed and highly likable. All three share such wonderful dynamic together and I’ve had a blast when they were all together.

Myrna Loy is very charming here, though this is far from her best roles. Clark Gable is suitably cool and suave. He was thus perfectly cast and he’s so much fun throughout. As for Spencer Tracy, this is the best role that he got during these couple of years where he dominated at the Oscars undeservingly so. But this is where he showcased his acting talent and charm the most. The scenes between the two men are so playful as their friendship is wonderful.

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As a result, those dramatic scenes that utilize on dialogue and characterization are my favorite of the bunch, but the problem here is that the action could overtake those scenes way too often unfortunately. Technically speaking, the movie looks good, it sounds great and it’s well executed throughout, but Fleming’s direction is one of his weakest efforts. It did not deserve its Oscar nominations in my opinion, though I could see it appealing to modern audiences’ tastes quite easily.

Spencer Tracy, Myrna Loy and Clarke Gable are all wonderful in Test Pilot. The dialogue is great and their scenes together are a lot of fun. However, other action-oriented scenes were much less interesting, the entire film is limited in appeal and the pacing is messy. It’s amusing and serviceable, but far from accomplished.

My Rating – 3

You can get Test Pilot on Amazon.