From Air to Eternity

Some time back, when I was in my previous house, TCM ran The Gypsy Moths and, for whatever reason, I didn't record it. Either it was before I had the DVR, or I just didn't have the space on my DVR. In any case, several months back it showed up on the TCM schedule again, so this time since the DVR is technically unlimited, I decided to record it to be able finally to watch it.

Three guys jump out of an airplane together, although it must be pointed out they have parachutes on. Those guys are Mike Rettig (Burt Lancaster), Joe Browdy (Gene Hackman) and Malcom Webson (Scott Wilson). On their way down, they unfurl a banner, and it's clear that these are actually stunt jumpers, putting on a show for the people watching from the ground below who have paid for the privilege.

Now, at this point, I was expecting a period piece, but after putting on the show the guys go to the next town to put on another show, and judging from the automobiles, it's contemprorary, meaning the late 1960s. The next town is Bridgeville, KS, which is an interesting place if only because Malcolm used to live there. He left many years ago, not having looked back, largely because his parents no longer live there. In fact, his parents no longer live at all. They died when Malcolm was young, and his aunt and uncle lived in Bridgeville. Now that he's back, perhaps he ought to look them up and see if they're still in Bridgeville.

Of course, they are in Bridgeville, and it's eventually going to become clear why Malcolm wanted to get the hell out of Bridgeville. Aunt Elizabeth (Deborah Kerr) and Uncle John Brandon (William Windom) never had kids of their own, and that has long been a bone of contention between them. But the couple is nice enough that they're willing to put the three skydivers up for the one or two nights they're going to be in town.

Although the Brandons never had kids of their own, they've got a big enough house not only to put the three men up, but to have boarders. Generally, that's students at the local college, although one, Annie Burke (Bonnie Bedelia), is staying there over the summer. She eventually becomes a bit of a love interest for Malcolm.

As you might guess, there's going to be love interests for the other two men. It also doesn't take much to figure out that one of the women involved is going to be frustrated Elizabeth, although at least she doesn't get into a relationship with Malcolm, because that would be really creepy. Instead, she and Rettig connect while the creep factor is from Joe trying to bed a dancer from the local strip club. They still have to perform the aerial stunts for the crowd, however....

The Gypsy Moths is the sort of movie that's too serious for its own good. The Production Code had recently gone out the window, and you can understand Hollywood wanting to deal with grown-up themes in a more grown-up way. But The Gypsy Moths has too much conversation between the various people involved, rather than aerial action. You'd think that in a movie dealing with parachute jumpers people would want to see the effects photography, instead of a romantic drama.

Everybody involved tries their best, and the movie's flaws are definitely not the fault of the actors. But it's still a movie that doesn't add up to all that much 50 years on.