Island in the Sky [Special Collector's Edition]

Director: William A. Wellman William A. Wellman

Overview

"During World War II, a Military Air Transport Command DC-3 piloted by a civilian crew is forced down in northern Labrador. The five men, led by Dooley (John Wayne), have barely any food and almost no way to keep warm, and their power supply is fading fast, but they have to find a way of staying alive until search planes find them. At first, even Dooley is overwhelmed by the responsibility for his crew's safety, and he is too lax in handling them -- but after one man dies, frozen to death just steps from help, he takes over and pushes his men and himself to the limits of their endurance; he even seems ready to crack himself at one moment. Meanwhile, the men who fly with Dooley push themselves and their machines past their endurance limits searching the arctic wastes for the downed plane. Island in the Sky -- based on the book by Ernest K. Gann (perhaps the best aviation novel ever written), which was, in turn, based on a true incident that happened during the war -- is one of the most startling movies in Wayne's output. He doesn't even look like the ""star"" John Wayne, but like a real pilot, and the cast, made up of familiar faces, all look like the real article; indeed, this movie should have been in the running for Academy Awards for costuming and makeup, just for making these familiar performers, such as Lloyd Nolan (in maybe his best performance) and Andy Devine (ditto), look like real pilots and ordinary men, rather than familiar actors. You end up feeling like you're watching a documentary, and the effect is bracing and unsettling, and dramatically unparalleled in Wayne's entire output."

Product Details

Release Date:	08/02/2005
UPC:	0097360289343
Original Release:	1953
Rating:	NR
Source:	Paramount
Region Code:	1
Presentation:	[B&W]
Sound:	[Dolby Digital Mono]
Language:	English
Time:	1:49:00
Sales rank:	11,443

Special Features

Closed Caption;Introduction by Leonard Maltin; Commentary by Leonard Maltin, William Wellman Jr., Darryl Hickman, James Lydon, and Vincent Longo; "Dooley's Down: The Making of Island in the Sky"; "Ernest K. Gann -- Adventurer, Author & Artist"; "Flight School -- The Art of Aerial Cinematography"; "The John Wayne Stock Company: Harry Carey, Jr."; "Flying for Uncle Sam"; Theatrical trailer; Newsreel footage of premiere; Introduction to Gunsmoke TV promo; Batjac montage; Photo gallery

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

John Wayne	Capt. Dooley
Lloyd Nolan	Stutz
James Arness	McMullen
Walter Abel	Col. Fuller
Andy Devine	Moon
Allyn Joslyn	J.H. Handy
James Lydon	Murray,Murray, the navigator
Harry Carey Jr.	Hunt
Hal Baylor	Stankowski
Sean McClory	Frank Lovatt
Wally Cassell	D'Annunzia
Gordon Jones	Walrus
Frank Fenton	Capt. Turner
Robert Keys	Maj. Ditson
Sumner Getchell	Lt. Cord
Regis Toomey	Sgt. Harper
Paul Fix	Miller
Jim Dugan	Gidley
George Chandler	Rene
Louis Jean Heydt	Fitch
Bob Steele	Wilson
Darryl Hickman	Swanson
Mike Connors	Gainer
Carl Switzer	Hopper
Cass Gidley	Stannish
Herbert Anderson	Breezy
Tony De Mario	Ogden
Ann Doran	Moon's Wife
Dawn Bender	Murray's Wife
Gene Coogan	Actor
John Indrisano	Actor
Tom Irish	Actor
Richard Walsh	Actor
Emil Newman	Composer

Technical Credits

Ernest K. Gann

Robert Fellows	Producer
William A. Wellman	Director
Ernest K. Gann	Screenwriter
John Wayne	Producer

Editorial Reviews

Island in the Sky is a minor but quite effective adventure drama that is rarely seen (due apparently to the wishes of the John Wayne estate). Island falls short of classic status, primarily because it succumbs to cliché in a number of situations and because it tends toward preachiness. In addition, the narration becomes rather annoying and intrusive at times, although it does add to the pseudo-documentary flavor of the movie. If the viewer can put these flaws aside, however, he will likely find himself caught up in the action, due in no small part to William Wellman's taut direction which does a fine job of combining bleakness and despair with an indomitability of spirit. Wellman is helped by his first rate cast, with Wayne turning in the kind of powerful "anchor" performance that this kind of film needs. He gets more than capable support from Lloyd Nolan and Andy Devine, as well as a young James Arness. Island exerts a real pull, and is the kind of film that stays with the viewer longer than might be expected.