The only thing that would have improved this would have been to make more films. The period detail was first rate, from the costumes, to he set design, to the slang. She looked great in the period clothing, too. Connelly brought both a wholesomeness and sex appeal to the role. As I said, I had hoped for a little sexier character but, the compromise was still pretty good. Then, there's Jennifer Connelly, one of the most beautiful and talented actresses in Hollywood. Add Tiny Ron as Lothar, modeled after Rondo Hatton, and you have some pretty fun villains. Paul Sorvino made a great 30's mobster, too. I wasn't too happy that they trotted out that Flynn-as-Nazi Spy nonsense but, it works beautifully for the story. Timothy Dalton made a great pseudo-Errol Flynn. He was more of a Connecticut Yankee than grouchy mechanic. Alan Arkin made a great Peevy, although he was far less cantankerous than his print counterpart (incidentally, Peevy was based on Doug Wildey, creator of Jonny Quest). Watching the movie, you could see the excitement when he was flying, and that he was head over heels in love with Jenny. He had that All-American look, with an impish twinkle in his eye. Bill Campbell was perfect for Cliff Secord. Yeah, I know, this is Disney, and she was far tamer in the comics than the real Betty/Bettie Page but, hey, a guy can hope. If there was anything to criticize, it was the toning down of Betty/Jenny.
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The film was full of action and humor, cliffhangers and character just like Stevens' creation. I was a bit annoyed that Disney felt they had to change Betty into Jenny, but with Jennifer Connelly in the role, I was in a forgiving mood. Sure it was disappointing that Doc Savage couldn't be included, but Howard Hughes made a sensible substitution.
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The movie captured the spirit of the comics beautifully.
It also brought along that Republic Studios flavor.
The comic captured the spirit of 1930's aviation pulps, as well as the Doc Savage crowd. I had loved the Dave Stevens comics since I first encountered them (ironically, at the same time I had read about Bettie Page in an article about Bunny Yeager, in a photography magazine). I was chomping at the bit, waiting for this movie to come out, back in 1991.