The Dawn Patrol (1938)

Introduction

The Dawn Patrol is a 1938 American war film, a remake of the pre-Code 1930 film of the same name.

Both were based on the short story “The Flight Commander” by John Monk Saunders, an American writer.

Outline

In 1915, at the airdrome in France of 59 Squadron Royal Flying Corps, Major Brand (Basil Rathbone), the squadron leader and his adjutant Phipps (Donald Crisp) anxiously await the return of the dawn patrol. Brand is near his breaking point. He has lost 16 pilots in the previous two weeks, nearly all of them young replacements with little training and no combat experience. Brand is ordered to send up tomorrow what amounts to a suicide mission. Captain Courtney (Errol Flynn), leader of A Flight, and his good friend “Scotty” Scott (David Niven) return but two of the replacements are not so lucky and another, Hollister, is severely depressed by having witnessed the death of his best friend. The survivors repair to the bar in their mess for drinks and fatalistic revelry. Courtney does his best to console Hollister but the youngster breaks down in grief.

When Brand announces the next day’s dawn patrol, Courtney tells Brand he does not have enough men. Brand retorts that more replacements are on the way. From the four green pilots, Courtney picks the two with the most flying hours to go on the mission. Only four return this time; Scott has been lost along with the two new men. Courtney tells a sympathetic Brand that Scott went down saving Hollister. Just then, British troops bring in the German who downed Scott, Hauptmann von Mueller (Carl Esmond). Courtney overcomes his initial rage when Brand informs von Mueller that it was Courtney who shot him down and the German graciously acknowledges him. Courtney then offers the German a drink. The guilt-ridden Hollister tries to attack the prisoner, but is restrained. Then, a grimy Scotty appears.

B Flight is mauled next. Just after its wounded leader, Captain Squires (Michael Brooke), informs the squadron that the dreaded von Richter is now their foe, an enemy aircraft flies low over their aerodrome and drops a pair of trench boots. Attached is a taunting note telling the British pilots that they will be safer on the ground. Brand warns his men that the boots are intended to incite inexperienced pilots into trying to retaliate. He forbids any take offs without orders. Courtney and Scott disregard the prohibition, taking off in the dawn mist after stealing the boots from Brand’s room. They fly to von Richter’s airfield, where the black-painted fighters are being readied for the day. Courtney and Scott bomb and strafe the field, destroying most of the German aircraft and shoot down two which try to take to the air. Courtney then drops the boots. Von Richter retrieves them and shakes his fist at the departing British. Courtney is shot down recrossing the lines, then rescued by Scott, whose aircraft is also hit by anti-aircraft fire. When leaking oil blinds Scott, Courtney talks him down to a crash landing behind their own trenches.

Brand’s outrage at their disobedience dissipates when headquarters congratulates him for the success of the attack and promotes him “up to Wing”. Brand takes cruel pleasure in naming Courtney to take command of 59 Squadron. Soon, Courtney is forced to acquire all the qualities he hated in Brand. When Scott’s younger brother Donnie is posted as a replacement, Scott begs Courtney to give him a few days so that he can teach his brother the ropes. Courtney tells him there can be no exceptions. Unbeknownst to Scott, Courtney calls headquarters to plead for a few days of training for his replacements but is turned down. Von Richter shoots down Donnie in flames the next morning, for which Scott blames Courtney.

Brand gives Courtney orders for a very important mission. An aircraft must fly low and bomb a huge munitions dump 37 mi (60 km) behind the lines. Brand bans Courtney from flying the mission, so Scott disdainfully volunteers. They reconcile and Courtney gets his friend too drunk to fly, then blows up the dump himself. Afterwards, von Richter intercepts Courtney,who outflies and shoots down two of the Germans, including von Richter but killed by a third pilot. Command of the squadron devolves to Scott. He lines up the depleted squadron for orders just as five replacements arrive. He stoically tells A Flight to be ready for the dawn patrol.

Cast

Errol Flynn as Courtney.
Basil Rathbone as Major Brand.
David Niven as Scott.
Donald Crisp as Phipps.
Melville Cooper as Watkins.
Barry Fitzgerald as Bott.
Carl Esmond as Von Mueller.
Peter Willes as Hollister.
Morton Lowry as Donnie.
Michael Brooke as Squires.
James Burke as Flaherty.
Stuart Hall as Bentham.
Herbert Evans as Nechanic.
Sidney Bracey as Major Brand’s Orderly (credited as Sidney Bracy).
Leo Nomis as Aeronautic Supervisor.
John Rodion as Lieutenant Russell.

Trivia

The screenplay from the first Dawn Patrol was reprised by original screenwriter Seton Miller, even though its dialogue had been limited because it had been one of the first sound pictures.
Miller, in conjunction with director Edmund Goulding, although following the original closely and crediting original co-writer Dan Totheroh, primarily rewrote dialogue to incorporate the characters played by Flynn, Rathbone and Niven.

Production & Filming Details