AllMovie

Italian matinee idol Amadeo Nazzari essays the title role in Luciano Serra, Pilot. Set in the years following WWI, the story begins as Serra, a wartime flying ace, can find no outlet for his energies in peacetime. He leaves Italy in search of new adventures, making a name for himself as a barnstorming "show" pilot. Embarking on a transatlantic flight, Serra disappears en route, obliging his son Aldo (Mario Ferrari) to uphold family tradition. When his plane is shot down during the Ethiopian campaign, Aldo is rescued by an elderly stranger who turns out to be none other than his own father Luciano. The film was produced by Benito Mussolini's son Vittorio Mussolini, a noted aviator in his own right. Luciano Serra, Pilot has lost a great deal of its luster over the years, especially when one remembers fascist Italy's atrocious treatment of the conquered Ethiopians.