Although Spencer Tracy played second fiddle to Clark Gable in other films (San Francisco, Boom Town), it was in Test Pilot that their relationship takes on an added dimension if one knows to look for it. (Think of it as the original Top Gun in more ways then one.)Gable is a hotshot pilot and Tracy his trusty best friend/co-pilot who is always there to clean up his messes - both in the air and on the ground. One could say that Tracy plays the western stock "old coot" character to Gable's impulsive adventurer; totally devoted to his hero, the "coot" doesn't like it when a woman (in this case, Myrna Loy) enters the picture. No female attachments means no interference when it comes time for all that male bonding out on the range ... or up in a plane.
At one point, Gable gruffly barks "I love ya!" to Tracy in that macho way guys do (they are even in a locker room when he does it). Tracy's reply is an understated "I love you too" brimming with unstated meaning.
Test Pilot is not currently on DVD, but the film does occasionally turn up on Turner Classic Movies. Keep an eye on my weekly "Latest on TV" column for future airings.
Links via Imdb.com and TCM.com.
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