Death in the Air (1936) User Reviews

X Rated

[sol1218 · 5/10 · 14 March 2005]

***SPOILERS*** An airborne homicidal lunatic is on the loose over the skies of America and has gunned down some half dozen passengers planes and their crews.

The imminent psychiatrist Dr. Norris,John Elliott, has come to the conclusion, by treating WWI vets with combat-related mental problems,that the crazed pilot is a deranged WWI ace who's still fighting the war and trying to run up his score of kills in the air. Dr. Norris also deducts that the airman, dubbed Pilot X due to the white X makings on his plane,is also suffering from split personality syndrome making him look and act normal when he's not in his WWI fighter ace mode.

Getting together with Jerry Blackwood, John Carroll, the hero of the film and US Aironotic inspector Gallagher, Willard Kent, Dr. Norris concocts this plan to trap and catch Pilot X by playing on his arrogance and bravado. Inviting the WWI aces in the area, feeling one of them is Pilot X, Dr. Norris is curtain that the killer would show up to throw off suspicion, on himself, and at the same time give him a chance to match wits and bullets with the other air aces, running up his score of kills against the best in the business, ace combat fighter pilots.

The movie has Pilot X leave messages that has the other aces go in the air and meet him in air-to air combat with almost all of them getting shot down by Pilot X. USAAF ace Let. Douglas Thompson, Wheeler Oakman, was mistakenly shot down by the hero of the movie Jerry Blackwood when Pilot X secretly painted a white X on the side of his plane and then having him shot down by Jerry thinking that he was Pilot X.

In the final sequence Jerry and nutty Capt. Saunders (Pat Summerset), who himself already lost his mind, took off to take on Pilot X with Jerry's girlfriend Helen, Lona Andre, stuck in Saunders plane's back seat. Jerry shoots down the insane Pilot X and,later on the ground after his plane crashed, reveal his identity.

Great aerial photography with the exciting air to air dog-fights between Pilot X and the flying aces of WWI made the movie, despite it's unbelievable story, worth watching. There was also a weird and hilarious scene with the off-the-wall Capt. Saunders completely flipping out of his head, over his experiences in the First World War, that ranks right up there with the great classic film crack-up scenes in movies like "Maniac" in 1934 and the great "Reefer Madness" in 1938.

Some logical difficulties

[blumdeluxe · 6/10 · 19 August 2017]

"Pilot X" tells the story of a pilot gone mad who goes on a killing spree after the war, killing other pilots and their guests. As the main suspects gather in a mansion over the weekend, one after the other high-decorated airmen fall victim to the mysterious murderer.

I actually enjoyed this movie quite a lot. The framework for the story is innovative and you do start to wonder who could be responsible for the murders. Even though the ending scene isn't very surprising, the production is solid and the climax works. However, there are some bigger logical plot holes that make it impossible for me to give a higher rating. First of all, it is a rather odd solution to search for a murderer by letting all the suspects compete in a kind of post-war hunger games followed by what has to be considered a disastrous investigation, given that nearly everyone involved is dead in the end. It's also remarkable that no-one seems to simply take a look at the planes. A bit unfortunate is that all the male actors wear mustaches, which makes it sometimes quite difficult to separate them from each other. The love story is a bit unnecessary and I didn't get what happened to the boyfriend but anyway, I enjoyed the film nonetheless and for this era it is more than just solid.

All in all you should give this one a try if you're looking for some mystery and aren't afraid of older movies. I had fun watching it and I think more people could as well.

Dated mix of aerial combat and old dark house mystery

[Leofwine_draca · 4/10 · 9 February 2017]

I saw this under the generic title PILOT X although MURDER IN THE AIR is a more appropriate title. It's a film of two halves, starting off as your usual aerial combat picture with dog fights and crashing planes and the like, all portrayed reasonably well within the constraints of the budget. The second half of the film is a more predictable murder mystery in which the suspects are assembled in an old dark house (which is actually modern and light) while investigators try to figure out which man is the murderous pilot responsible.

The story becomes quite predictable by genre standards and there are some fun trappings here and there to keep you watching. In the end, though, the two genres - action and mystery - never really gel all that successfully and the end result just feels a bit choppy. Worth a watch for genre fans, but not a film you'll want to see more than once.

Sky King would be proud

[wrbtu · 24 June 2001]

Don't be fooled by the hype- this is not an "old dark house" movie as some sources (including the liner notes on the video box) claim. It's more like a "new light house" movie. Yes, there is a secret room, a hidden door, hidden motion detectors, a lurking figure, a thunderstorm, & plenty of murders, but the main ingredient, a gloomy atmosphere, is sorely missing here. And there's no comedy at all, which is another important ingredient of the Old Dark House genre. There's way too much light & outdoor scenes to qualify. And the house looks quite modern (for 1936, which is the copyright date). John Carroll is very handsome to look at. Lona Andre is very pretty to look at. And the acting is fair to middling or worse (there are even a couple of muffed lines that were left as is). And the plot is muddled, & all the deaths occur in World War I fighter planes. If aerial photography & biplane mounted machine gun battles are your thing, then by all means this is the movie for you. But if you're looking for a good mystery or Old Dark House, look elsewhere. I rate it 5/10.

This one died before it went in the air.

[Mike-764 · 2/10 · 17 January 2005]

A series of planes have been mysteriously shot down by a rogue pilot in a black plane with an X painted on the wing. Three of the planes were manufactured by Henry Goering and the government sends a pilot (Jerry Blackwood) to check if the planes malfunctioned due to construction, but after a survivor names a Pilot X as the murderer, Dr. Norris (psychologist) suggests a former WWI ace pilot would be the culprit due to the skill and mentality for such crimes. Goering invites 5 former WWI aces to his home to weed out the killer, while making them believe they are actually hunting for Pilot X, who kills two of the pilots and dupes Blackwood into killing the third. After that murder (and Dr. Norris after he discovers the killer's identity), Blackwood dares Pilot X to challenge him solo in the air, while the authorities are led to believe Blackwood is the culprit. Interesting premise, but this movie lies in the turkey category by the ridiculous and implausible script, really really bad acting, and horrendous directing. The climax of the final aerial battle with Blackwood and Pilot X is decent at best considering it drags on a bit longer than it should have. Avoid this one. Rating, 2.

My nominee for most insane plot!

[planktonrules · 2/10 · 23 July 2010]

This strange B-movie might just have the most bizarre and insane plot of any film I have ever seen--or at least it's might close. Now considering that I have so far reviewed almost 9000 films, this says a lot about "Death in the Air"!

The film begins with Racer X, I mean 'Pilot X' flying about the country shooting down passenger planes for kicks! Doctor Norris has a totally insane idea about who the killer pilot could be...it's someone with a split personality. He then assembles a group of ex-WWI pilots who COULD be the mysterious Pilot X and invites them to his house for a sleepover. Think about it...he invites them there so they can start killing each other---and this is exactly what occurs. One by one, the men (for no discernible reason whatsoever) take to the air and are shot down by X. That is, until X himself is finally destroyed! None of this plot made any sense and I guessed at the beginning of the movie who the mystery man was, so it certainly is NOT a good movie by any standard...except one. If you are a bad movie fan and like watching movies so silly that they are good for a laugh, then this picture is for you.

In addition to the dopey plot, there is another character who might just be the most over-the-top character I've seen in years--and I say three cheers for Captain Saunders. The totally ridiculous explosive outbursts by this nutty character make this movie worth seeing! Seeing him rant and rave with some Hollywood version of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder is unintentionally hilarious. This is one of the worst scene-chewing examples you can find in film. However, if you DO take this film or Saunders' character too seriously, your brain might explode! Yes, it's THAT dumb!

Another unintentionally hilarious scene is where Dr. Norris tells a friend on the phone that he KNOWS who the X-man is and that he should come over right away to learn the guy's identity! You just KNOW that only seconds later Norris will be assuming room temperature--and that's exactly what happens. Don't you think that if you knew who a serial killer was you'd tell everyone who it was that--and perhaps then call the police to arrest him and protect you?! Well, certainly not in this bizarro world!

How all this ends and who the killer is also will provide some laughs. I don't want to say more--rest assured that it IS convoluted and insane!

So is there anything good about the film? Well, the aerial sequences are pretty good but I think a lot of them were lifted from other films. One in particular (the burning cockpit scene) might just be from "Hell's Angels" and the crashed planes were obviously just very cheap hunks of wood tossed together.

What Mansion?

[saracen238 · 2/10 · 3 December 2023]

The brief blurb at the start of this page hasn't even got that basic detail correct? They don't go to an "old, dark mansion", at least not in a literal, physical sense, only in a plot sense. However; I'm not confident I can use the words 'plot' and 'sense' in the same sentence with this film.

Planes are falling out of the sky, for no apparent reason, until a (temporary) survivor tells the authorities a mysterious plane marked with an X appeared just before they crashed. They subsequently call/haul in 5 former W. W. I aces; from 5 different ;countries living in the area, who all turn up, resplendent in the uniforms of 18 years earlier.

From then on it is indeed a cookie-cutter "old, dark house" until the mysterious X pilot is revealed and a hasty wrap-up finale.

Along the way to the conclusion there are aerial dog-fight scenes,.which are decidedly unconvincing and unexciting.

The only thing it had going for it I thought was Lona Andre, who looked gorgeous.

A cult favorite! Make that 6.5.

[JohnHowardReid · 6/10 · 12 May 2018]

Lona Andre (Helen Gage), John Carroll (Jerry Blackwood), Henry Hall (Henry Goering), Leon Ames (Carl Goering), Pat Somerset (Roland Saunders), Reed Howes (John Ives), John S. Peters (i.e. Hans Joby) (Baron Otto von Guttard), Wheeler Oakman (Douglas Thompson), Gaston Glass (Rene La Rue), Willard Kent (Inspector Gallagher), John Elliott (Dr Norris), Forrest Taylor (survivor).

Director: ELMER CLIFTON. Screenplay: Charles R. Condon. Story: Bernard McConville. Photography: James Diamond, Art Reed. Film editor: Carl Himm. Producer: Fanchon Royer. Production manager: Leonard L. Levinson. Assistant director: Wilfred Black.

Not copyright. A Fanchon Royer Production. Released in the USA by Puritan Pictures. No New York opening. 69 minutes.

Alternate titles: Pilot X; Death in the Sky. U.K. release title: Murder in the Air. 1943 re-issue title: The Mysterious Bombardier.

SYNOPSIS: A mysterious rogue pilot in a mysterious rogue plane is shooting down, one by one, the veteran survivors of WW1 dogfights.

COMMENT: Some spectacular aerial dog-fight footage cleverly integrated, gives this little mystery thriller a considerable lift. Also to be highly praised are most of the players led by the lovely, vivacious Lona Andre and personable John Carroll.

Ever-reliable John Elliott, plus an intriguing Erich von Stroheim imitator (namely Hans Joby in disguise as John S. Peters), plus Reed Howes, plus Leon Ames should also be congratulated.

The pace is fast and the solution comes as a genuine surprise. This movie has a small but vociferous cult following - and no wonder!

Breezy mystery about a mysterious pilot shooting down planes is a good way to spend an hour

[dbborroughs · 8/10 · 3 January 2006]

When planes are crashing from an unknown cause the government at first suspects mechanical trouble. However when a survivor of one of the crashes mentions that a mysterious plane with large X's on the wing was spotted just as the plane exploded its realized that something more is afoot. Its quickly deduced that the murderous pilot is an ex-airmen from the great war, so all of the airmen in the area are rounded up both to help hunt down the killer and to allow for all the suspects to be in one place.

This is a breezy little mystery with planes engaging in dogfights, secret panels, secret rooms, murder on the ground (in addition to in the air), romance and various other mystery standbys. Its a great deal of fun to try and guess who Pilot X is from among all of the possible suspects, though you'll probably have it narrowed down to one or two possibilities from the get go. It moves along at a nice clip and keeps you engaged for its just over an hour running time. Think of it as a aerial version of Ten Little Indians.

Worth a bag of popcorn, a soda and an hour of your time.

Goering in the air, but not the Luftwaffe

[searchanddestroy-1 · 8/10 · 4 June 2022]

The thing that I noticed first was that there was a GOERING named character in a movie involving planes, and before WW2. But Herman Goering was already wide known around the world as the German Air Force 6 - LUFTWAFFE - chief. Anyway, it is always amusing, even decades later, to notice such detail; and no user seems to have noticed it. So, back to this small feature typical of the thirties, the mystery scheme is not new at all. There were hundreds of them in those days, concerning, old mansions, closed rooms, Pacific liners.... A murder is commited and the murderer is one of the characters, whom we'll find only at the end. Irepeat, always the same topic, more or less, some less interesting than others, and always very talkative; the early talkies !!!! This one directed by Elm Clifton is not the worst of them all; Clifton was not Wellman either.