It is definitely an intense movie, no doubt. I think the things that really stood out for me were:

1. The movie starts with the 1st officer walking into the cockpit, and ends, when he leaves. The entire movie is shot from inside the cockpit. 
2. It is pretty much a real-time movie, meaning they really don't skip ahead. There is a very strong feeling that you are there.
3. The experience of being a Captain/1st Officer on a commercial airliner is authentic. ATC comms are authentic. Procedures, etc. 
4. It is a very plausible hijacking. This gives you the experience of what that might be like, in real-time from the Captain/1st Officer's perspective.
5. The main hijacker is portrayed as a person, and not just a caricature. Again, very authentic. 
6. And lastly, the acting, direction, sound and production value are top-notch. 

It is different from just about any movie I have ever seen for this genre. 

Edited October 2, 20214 yr by RobJC

2 hours ago, FlightSpinner said:

Thanks for that. I'll look it up.

Seems to me there's a shortage of aviation-based films these days. I'd especially like to see some survival type movies. For example, a group of friends head into the wild in a Cessna on a camping trip - perhaps with pilot guy not having quite completed his flight training yet, but thinking that he knows more than he actually does, and accompanied by his co-pilot Jack Daniels and some rather nervous and paranoid passengers. What could possibly go wrong.

PS: Any Netflix script writers on Avsim?  😉

Not quite a avation movie per se , but Anthony Hopkin's at his best : The Edge : https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119051/?ref_=nm_flmg_act_58

2 hours ago, Ray Proudfoot said:

We need more films like “Airplane” but I’m not sure we have the scriptwriters or actors to deliver it. Comedy definitely in short supply these days.

“Airplane”. That sure is a comedy classic. Mind you, if I remember correctly, it did have some quite dark themes too, such as passengers beating up the old lady in row 33;  and all the drinking, smoking and drug-taking on duty -in the control tower etc.  And of course the captain repeatedly making unsavoury advances to a 10 year old boy.  It wouldn't be made today for at least some of those reasons. But a flight-based comedy, perhaps involving an armchair 'pilot' who cons his way into the cockpit of a real long-haul airline, might be fun.

1 hour ago, RobJC said:

It is different from just about any movie I have ever seen for this genre. 

Well said.  I'm only part-way through but I'm well impressed by the in-flight realism and drama. Both the pilot and co-pilot seem very convincing in their technical roles, and the film to me feels like your watching a flight- sim movie with added action and tension. 
So far so good.

12 minutes ago, FlightSpinner said:

Mind you, if I remember correctly, it did have some quite dark themes too, such as passengers beating up the old lady in row 33;  and all the drinking, smoking and drug-taking on duty -in the control tower etc.  And of course the captain repeatedly making unsavoury advances to a 10 year old boy.  It wouldn't be made today for at least some of those reasons.

All of that was in jest and in times when people weren’t scared of causing offence. Or audiences looking for offence where none exists. The humour was so fast, blink and you miss it. Same goes with There’s Something About Mary.

If studios carry on like this films will become so bland no one will go to see them. There are some people suggesting James Bond’s character should be played by a woman. Noooo!

50 minutes ago, FlightSpinner said:

“Airplane”.

 

7 minutes ago, Ray Proudfoot said:

All of that was in jest and in times when people weren’t scared of causing offence. Or audiences looking for offence where none exists. 

Sure thing. They they were certainly different times in the 70s..  I've seen Airplane numerous times, including the week it was released and I always enjoyed it. But I also felt the writers went a bit too close to the bone with the captain and the kid scenes, 1970s comedy or not. e.g.- - -

Captain Oveur:
Joey: You ever seen a grown man naked?

 

  There are some people suggesting James Bond’s character should be played by a woman. Noooo!

"The name's Bond, Janice Bond".   It doesn't quite work, does it? ;-) 

Just a small point and I could be completely wrong but, in the trailer for 7500, ATC asks "what is the emergency" and the first officer says "we have a 7500", but 7500 is a squawk code where voice communication is not possible, so ATC would know it's a hijacking and the first officer wouldn't reply saying the squawk code.

2 hours ago, FlightSpinner said:

They they were certainly different times in the 70s.. 

I don’t recall any outrage about those scenes at the time. I raised an eyebrow about the gladiator comment after I stopped laughing and that was about it for me.

10 hours ago, Ray Proudfoot said:

I don’t recall any outrage about those scenes at the time. I raised an eyebrow about the gladiator comment after I stopped laughing and that was about it for me.

Exactly, and that's the point. There was no outrage.The 70s were different times. Yes many of us felt some unease while watching the portrayal of pedophile grooming behavior towards a small boy. But we all laughed nonetheless because the film was well written and acted, and hey!, because it was the 70s. ;-)

But times have changed of course, and since then we've learned of the many thousands of children, on both sides of the atlantic, who were groomed and sexually abused by adults, often within the 'safe' environs of school, church and home. The mental and physical abuse those children suffered cannot be imagined and is of course no laughing matter - with many requiring surgery and psychiatric treatment for years after the event (the acclaimed English pianist James Rhodes was one such victim, and his book 'Instrumental' is well worth reading I reckon).   

So yes, our awareness of such issues has grown since the 70s, and that's why we'll probably never see anything like the Captain and Joey scenes in a movie again, at least not in a comedy setting.
But of course there's still plenty of scope for aviation gags in comedy films, so carry on flying guys ;-)

'Airplane!’ The Jokes We Roared At Then"
-Decider Magazine

"...these actors [in Airplane] were expected to, and did, deliver their ridiculous lines with absolute poker faces. So when young Joey is ushered into the cockpit and Graves’ character immediately starts in with “You ever seen a grown man naked? Joey? You ever hang around the gymnasium?” the laughter it triggers is not because pedophilia is funny — it’s not — but because this character actor is saying these words with unabashed, bland, stentorian sincerity. And the “I can’t believe this” effect is heightened not just by the fact that no one in the cockpit reacts (save stewardess Randy, who wants to get Joey out of there as quickly as possible) but that Oveur/Graves keeps at it, reaching an apex or nadir with “Do you like gladiator movies?” This ostensibly distasteful stuff is woven in with my favorite gag in the movie...."

https://decider.com/2019/07/18/the-problematics-airplane-glenn-kenny/

"Airplane!" vs. "Zero Hour!". Great comparison. Not everything in the movies is new.   

 

On 10/1/2021 at 5:50 AM, RobJC said:

It’s a must watch movie for the flight sim fan. 

Thanks again for recommending the '7500” movie.  I finished watching it this afternoon, and I have to say it came as a bit of a shock to read later on the web that the co-pilot is actually an actor and not a professional airline pilot. Of course I knew this already, but the film is so convincing that it draws you in and overrides reality in a way.

Some thoughts:

Spoiler alert

Ah, so that's why the man loaded up with duty free wine bottles before boarding the plane.

Also, I'm think this film might make the authorities look again at the security of the flight-deck door.

Current strategy:

 " In the air, procedures vary from airline to airline and from region to region, but the principle that only those with legitimate need must be permitted flight deck access must be paramount. Beyond the pilots at the controls, this will include relief, check and training pilots. Exceptionally, such flight deck occupancy may exceptionally be extended to include other specifically-authorised employees of the operator - pilots, cabin crew and maintenance personnel. Flight Operations Inspectors carrying out observations on behalf of the State Regulatory Body may also be permitted access at the discretion of the aircraft commander subject to valid identification being presented prior to entry approval."

https://www.skybrary.aero/index.php/Flight_Deck_Security

Finally, here are a few non-aviation films I've seen recently and enjoyed:-

1) The Boat (2018)  

RT review:

"The Boat is a beautifully shot, well performed, and sharply edited thriller. It sails into uncharted territory and proves to be one of the year's best surprises. Hold fast!" 

https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_boat_2018

2) Ray (2004)

Timeless, a brilliant biography of Ray Charles and his many challenges and triumphs. 

3)  Vivarium (2020)

Probably one of the oddest and most mysterious films Ive ever seen, with great acting by
Jesse Eisenberg.  (Might appeal to fans of David Lynch style films) 

https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/vivarium

21 hours ago, Ray Proudfoot said:

I don’t recall any outrage about those scenes at the time. I raised an eyebrow about the gladiator comment after I stopped laughing and that was about it for me.

"Have you ever been in a Turkish prison?"  😆

55 minutes ago, n4gix said:

"Have you ever been in a Turkish prison?"  😆

Ah, Midnight Express I presume. 🤣