6.5/10 With maybe the most boring, uninspired movie title ever, a star with once great potential who has unfortunately signed on for one too many C rate action shlock movies and a premise that has been done before, “Plane” seemed to be doomed from the start. Imagine my shock when this movie turned out to be a fun, highly entertaining throwback to action films of the 1980s and 1990s. While the movie certainly has flaws, I couldn’t help but enjoy shutting off my brain and relaxing while I watched some good, old fashioned action/violence unfold. As for the plot, the synopsis reads, “A pilot finds himself caught in a war zone after he’s forced to land his commercial aircraft during a terrible storm.” A reluctant action hero finding himself stuck in a dangerous situation he didn’t plan on is a staple of many action films (“Die Hard” comes to mind) and the plane aspects bring to mind everything from “Air Force One” to “Con Air”. This movie certainly borrows from almost every action movie ever made, ensuring that nothing being shown here is something new to the viewer. There is the bare minimum character development for our leading actors (Gerard Butler as Brodie and Mike Colter as Louis) and none whatsoever for all of the supporting players. A couple of moments were certainly over the top and many scenes are perfectly convenient with characters getting bailed out of trouble at the last second. Some good guys who come in near the end of the movie to help were almost too good at their jobs as I hoped more of them would have been injured or killed, only to up the stakes/drama of our heroes having a tougher time. They almost made things too easy, which took away the sense of danger for our protagonists. The score was also forgettable and there wasn’t much style in terms of direction. Despite all of these problems, there was beauty in the simplicity of the movie. There was no political agenda or political correctness shoved down our throats. There was no hardcore thinking or mystery solving. It was a nice break to just watch some old school ass kicking from masculine men taking down truly evil antagonists. Despite the lack of style, the action scenes were still entertaining enough and the R rated violence felt refreshing after too many watered down PG-13 action movies. The chemistry between Butler and Colter was solid (Tony Goldwyn as Scarsdale also stole every scene he was in) and even the over the top ending managed to…stick its landing…despite being unrealistic. While not being a game changer in any way, shape or form, “Plane” managed to overcome the cards stacked against it by knowing what kind of movie it wanted to be and letting the audience turn off their brains so they could enjoy a fun action flick. With positive box office numbers and a sequel already announced, I’d say “Plane” accomplished the mission at hand.
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