Older Reviews

NO HIGHWAY IN THE SKY (1951)
Stressed-out scientist stresses metal stress

Most of the cast of this little-known gem is British, as are the look and feel of the film, but the lead actor is Jimmy Stewart. Aeronautical engineer Theodore Honey is the quintessential absent-minded professor: eccentric, forgetful, brilliant – a sober version of Stewart's Elwood P. Dowd, character in HARVEY. Honey’s math shows that the passenger aircraft Reindeer, manufactured by his employers, has a deadly structural design flaw that manifests itself without warning after a certain number of flying hours. Of course, nobody believes him despite the recent, unexplained crash of one of the planes. En route to the crash site to gather evidence, Honey discovers that he is aboard a Reindeer which is rapidly approaching the predicted deadline. He warns the crew and several passengers, but after a safe landing, Honey is ridiculed by almost everyone. Then, moments later, the tail of the Reindeer Honey has been testing falls off and proves him a hero. Mixed in with the suspenseful will-it-or-won't-it-crash moments, NO HIGHWAY IN THE SKY is filled with others of gentle humor and tremendous warmth.