Thunder Birds (1942)

During WWII at an Arizona training base for Army pilots, a flying instructor (Preston Foster) and a British RAF cadet (John Sutton) are in love with the same girl (Gene Tierney). Not all war propaganda films made during WWII dealt with combat, some were set on the homefront. The cadets at the air base are Americans, English and even Chinese all learning to fly so they can do their bit for their respective countries. Despite having the often inventive William A. Wellman at the helm, this is a decidedly minor effort notable for the gorgeous three strip Technicolor lensing of Ernest Palmer (BROKEN ARROW) and the excellent aerial sequences. The two leading men are definitely "B" listers and Tierney (looking stunning in Technicolor) is stuck in the "girl" role. Wellman was under contract to Fox at this time and this was clearly an assignment he had no interest in. There's a rather amusing scene set in a Red Cross training center that brightens the movie briefly but generally, the film borders on tedium. With Dame May Whitty, Richard Haydn, Reginald Denny and Joyce Compton.