Lovesusti The Worst Film Ever

Ensofter Overrated and overhyped

StyleSk8r At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

Usamah Harvey The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

Brucey D There are those who would speak of this film in the same breath as 'The Conqueror'. I disagree, this is a much better movie than that; just endlessly meddled with and released too late for the film's 'hooks' to be relevant back in the day; the aircraft were out of date and US-Soviet relations had noticeably deteriorated in the meantime. Gorgeous though she is, Leigh is about as convincing a Russian thing as a slice of apple pie would be, and John Wayne is, well, John Wayne, i.e. a bit wooden whenever he isn't sat on a horse, pretty much.However, looking at it fifty or sixty years later, none of that matters; there are those who would argue that a 'bad film' that happens to have John Wayne and Janet Leigh in it is actually a 'good film' in the grand scheme of things. Even if you are not big on either lead, it is still an interesting period piece and has enough amusing/interesting moments (just) to make it watchable in it's own right.For example, I never knew that a jet plane could wolf-whistle before, but that is the way it is dubbed in the scene where Leigh disrobes whilst being 'searched' early in the film.Aviation enthusiasts will doubtless be interested to see the period aircraft; F-86A Sabres, Boeing B50, Bell X-1 (last flight ever), Convair B36, Lockheed F94 Starfire, Lockheed T33 Shooting Star, Northrop F-89 Scorpions all make an appearance, some painted to more closely resemble Soviet types.Sure, the plot is nonsense, and asides from the aerial sequences, the production values are nothing to get excited about. But this film is still worth watching, even if all it does is give rise to dumb questions like 'who gave her a pearl necklace, anyway...?' ...who wouldn't have...?

SimonJack What a fun film this turned out to be. I don't recall it at all from my high school days in 1957, and now having seen it in my retirement years, "Jet Pilot" is a very entertaining movie. The history of this film, from its making in 1950 and delayed release until 1957 is interesting in itself. Thanks to those reviewers who added to that background.The flying sequences with all the aerial antics are excellent. Howard Hughes was known for his interest and work in aviation, so his interest in producing this movie is obvious. It would be interesting to know some of the politics or other hidden details behind the film's delayed release of so many years. How much of a concern might there have been in Washington about a film like this during the early months of the Korean War (then called "conflict")? To those whose sons, husbands or brothers were in peril on the battlefields of Korea, a film with humor about the Cold War could be seen as dispassionate. The world was just five years beyond the end of World War II, and it was still fresh in the minds of most. The extent of the atrocities of the Holocaust was still being unveiled. Likewise, the horrors and effects of the atomic bombs dropped on Japan to end World War II in 1945. Were there other reasons for holding this film back?Whatever the reason, by the time of its release, "Jet Pilot" was clearly the first tongue-in-cheek treatment of the Cold War and Soviet Union that would reach its zenith in 1964 with "Dr. Strangelove." More than half a century later, the flying scenes in "Jet Pilot" are exciting and fun to watch. With all of the supersonic developments in aviation and all the space missions in the past half century, most of us still don't move at the speed of jet fighters when traveling. So, the film isn't outdated to that extent. As for plot and script, I think this movie may indeed have been ahead of its time. Anyone with a sense of humor has to appreciate the obvious spoofing in this film. The idea that the U.S. would let a dubious Soviet defector fly any aircraft she wanted, and have free reign to go where she wanted around military bases in 1950 is itself so preposterous that even a modern-day Scrooge would have to laugh. In its day, the humor of that would not have been lost, and most audiences by 1957 surely would have been able to enjoy the obvious word play, characterizations and humorous jabs throughout the script. John Wayne and Janet Leigh especially added to the humor with their facial expressions and sometimes subtle, sometimes obvious comedic nuances. The supporting cast did likewise – check out the laid back almost nonchalant attitudes of the FBI and CIA agents. That some reviewers could not see the intentional spoofing in this film – by director, writer, actors and all, is puzzling. Maybe some have lost all sense of humor. Anyway, the film makers gave us sufficient obvious signals – Leigh's miscues on Wayne's baloney, bird hatching and other idiomatic references. And then, to be sure the audience didn't miss its laugh, each one of those was followed with Paul Fix giving Leigh some other concocted explanation for what Wayne had said. Another laugh, bigger than the first. In 1962, Agent 007 gave birth to the James Bond movies in "Dr. No." Ian Fleming's and later writers' subsequent stories have continued to entertain audiences with their mixture of mystery, action, romance and humor for half a century. And the humor is usually in the form of spoofery. Anyone who has enjoyed the James Bond franchise of films will enjoy "Jet Pilot." It's a milder form of this mixed genre. Who knows, it may even have influenced the James Bond producers. Clearly, all involved in this film were having fun. So, enjoy it yourself. Just don't take it any more seriously than you would a James Bond movie.

cselubks-1 JET PILOT (1957) is one of the most idiosyncratic and surprising films that I have seen recently. That Janet Leigh, complete with jet-age bra support, has no pretensions to a Russian accent is in itself strangely disarming, setting the tone of a complex artifice that caricatures and manipulates the images and mannerisms of Cold War America. The dialog and the aerial acrobatics are a feast of double entendre. The scene in the restaurant with platters of sizzling Technicolor steaks ("That's all they have here.") is a worthy precursor of Warhol's multiples. Viewers with a taste for the more eccentric films of Vincent Minelli and, more recently, Todd Haynes will find this film a rare delicacy.

cnturn I watched the movie Jet Pilot with John Wayne and Janet Leigh and I would have to rate it at least 8 out of 10 scale. I did notice one scene in the movie with a small bet between two radar operators. Each bet a coin on whether Col. Shannon (John Wayne) who was flying with Lt. Anna Marladovna (Janet Leigh) would make contact (on radar) with a large cargo type plane (B-36)in 35 seconds. The actual time watching the movie, from the point to contact was 23 seconds not 35 seconds, but the radar scope operator when he lost the bet said he was off just 1/5 second. It was a great movie and interesting plot.I watched the movie on AMC December 1, 2006. I am an Avid John Wayne fan and hadn't even realized that this movie he made. Your Website IMDb provided extensive detail on specifics regarding characters etc. and I appreciate your effort in providing this for the public.