Air Force One (Letterbox Edition)

Director: Wolfgang Petersen
Screenplay: Andrew W. Marlowe
Starring: Harrison Ford, Gary Oldman, Glenn Close, Dean Stockwell, William H. Macy, Jurgen Prochnow

John's Review

One of the amazing things about Harrison Ford is his ability to choose the perfect movie roles. After viewing Air Force One (in pan and scan or letterbox), it will be perfectly clear that the movie could not do without Ford and Ford couldn't do better than the movie. Director Petersen (In the Line of Fire, Outbreak, Das Boot, Shattered, Never Ending Story) take a relatively silly idea and makes it something tense and significant. In the middle of the whole action packed airborne gunplay and fist-fights, Petersen grounds this film in humanistic terms, which is such a nice change from some recent in-flight trash. Con-Air and Turbulence to name a couple.

Ford plays President Marshall who makes political enemies by supporting the imprisonment of Russia's comunist military leader. After making a speech in Moscow about not giving into terrorism demands ever again, the President boards Air Force One for home with his family and a ball game between Michigan and Notre Dame. But, six rabid followers (headed by Oldman) of the deposed military leader make it on board posing as journalists. With the aid of a traiter on board, they get armed and proceed to take over the plane.

The hijackers think that the President has escaped from the plane, but he has remained on-board because it's the right thing to do. That and his wife and daughter are still on board. The cat and mouse scenario that follows is tense and thrilling. The President against the hijackers and against the clock as well. All along there is a seperate drama unfolding at the White House.

The Vice President (Close) faces two threats; the one to her boss, the other from the Secretary of Defense (Stockwell), who claims in the words of Alexander Haig, "I'm in charge here." The Defense Secretary lobbies for a proclamation declaring the President "incapacitated." Close does a good job of balancing her character's resolution with a softer side.

Petersen's ability to draw you into the story line is so good that it will have you cheering for the good guys and booing at the bad ones. The movie moves along at just the right pace to keep you on the edge of your seat and no calming satisfying epilogues, and just the right hie wire not to end the films gives this film a high grade.

My only question, just what was the traitor's motivation?

Grade: B+