Cloud Dancer
Cloud Dancer
| 29 May 1980 (USA)
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Brad Randolph (David Carradine) is the World Champion aerobatic pilot but now, in his early 40s, he faces many challenges to maintain his position. His physical struggles are heightened by the presence of a youthful competitor, Tom Loomis (Joseph Bottoms). Intertwined with his professional struggles is his relationship with Helen St. Clair (Jennifer O'Neil).

Reviews
Matcollis

This Movie Can Only Be Described With One Word.

TrueHello

Fun premise, good actors, bad writing. This film seemed to have potential at the beginning but it quickly devolves into a trite action film. Ultimately it's very boring.

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HottWwjdIam

There is just so much movie here. For some it may be too much. But in the same secretly sarcastic way most telemarketers say the phrase, the title of this one is particularly apt.

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Myron Clemons

A film of deceptively outspoken contemporary relevance, this is cinema at its most alert, alarming and alive.

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PeterMitchell-506-564364

This time, Carradine's not racing cars, he's flying planes in a breathtaking show of aerobatics. It's a darn Pity there wasn't more of a story or a plot. But all the aerobatic, especially at the start makes up for it. Carradine, turns in a good performance as a man driven by what he does best, if that means subjecting himself to a couple of nose bleeds. He falls in love too, his older retarted brother not wanting him to fly, fearing for him. This is a movie for the whole family, drama, and a bit of action off the airstrip. Wannabe younger pilot Bottoms forms a friendship with Carradine, who takes him under his wing so to speak. Bottoms, brings a bit of trouble down on him, getting into a bit of mischief from some bad guys. We too have a somewhat dramatic end, where may'be Carradine has pushed himself way too far. Cloud Dancer is a must of entertainment, if only watching for all the different sort of air stunts, where there's no denying it's an impressive display. Your eyes will be be absolutely riveted to the screen. Being a Disney film, back in the eighties, they charged me a dollar more for this, but it was worth it, let me tell you.

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bobbyp1966

Brad Randolph (Carradine) has a lot on his life's plate: he flies aerobatics, is mentoring a protégé in aerobatics and trying to keep him away from air drug-smuggling, has a girlfriend who wants a committed relationship but fears an offspring would be afflicted by the same defective gene which affects his brother, who he loves a great deal. To top it off, he's affected by blackouts which put him at risk in the air, but he flies anyway. Brad comes under further pressure when his girlfriend turns up pregnant, and more so when he comes to the rescue of his protégé, pitting himself and a T-tail Piper Lance against a P-51 Mustang flown by a smuggler in a rather spectacular aerial scene. By the time the dust settles, Brad is ready to compete in an airshow and comes to grips with his worries and his life when he's spared in a plane accident and he meets his new child. Of course, at the end, everything's gonna be alright.Not a bad film, really. It's good to see Carradine in a role other than Kwai Chang Caine.

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Checkboard

I was an aerobatic instructor in the late 80's and this was my favourite film. That sounds like an inane statement - but when a pilot can tell you they like a film about flying, then you have some idea that the life of flying and the flying itself has been captured with a sympathy which is very rare in flying movies.The drug-running side plot is a shame, as it detracts from the main plot - when it would have been so easy to script enough drama to fill the movie. Filming is without blue screen, many of the pilots are depicted by serious aerobatic flyers of the time, and David Carradine does a very good job.I even like the music.

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tubbm

I must have seen this film about 100 times. My dad, Terry Tubb, and my grandfather, Walt Tubb were in this film. My dad and grandfather were aerobatics pilots back in the 70's before I was born. My grandfather played one of the judges and also did some of the aerobatics routines in his 'mythical pitts' and my father does a lot of the flying in his pitts special. The thing that most people don't know is that when they filmed Brad's older friend 'walt"'s plane crash scene where he dies, my grandfather Walt Tubb, flew that sequence in his airplane to make it look like he was spinning out of control and falling towards the earth. My grandfather said he got a weird feeling after filming this scene. He died shortly after the film wrapped flying in an airshow where he crashed the very plane he did a 'pretend' crash sequence for. He died before both I was born. I never knew him, and as a young child when I watched this movie, I thought I was watching my grandfather die. It wasn't until I was older that I understood what it really meant.

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