Amenaza en el aire

With the boss of the "Moretti" crime family about to go on trial, his accountant "Winston" (Topher Grace) thought it better to skedaddle to the Alaskan wilderness. Unluckily for him, determined deputy marshal "Madolyn" (Michelle Dockery) tracks him down and engages the pilot of a single-prop aircraft to fly him back to New York to turn state's evidence. The pilot (Mark Wahlberg) is one of those annoyingly chirpy guys and off they set. It's gonna be a bumpy ride, but after she notices a few scars on this man, it proves to be a great deal bumpier as their tiny little cockpit becomes the scene for quite a power struggle. It's that claustrophobic environment and quite an engaging effort from Wahlberg that deliver here as this airborne game of cat and mouse hots up. Sure, it does repeat itself once too often and the story is really all quite predictably weak, but the scenario does work well enough and with Grace's wise-cracking and a competent performance from Dockery it's actually not a bad watch for ninety minutes.

I like the actors so I really thought this would be a good film, but it just wasn't!

It became obvious very quickly that all was not what it seemed and then the generic lines started. It's almost as if you can see the actors waiting for each other to say their lines which is so strange when they are all seasoned pros.

There was some incredibly frustrating action scenes and some parts that were just annoying. Like in a horror movie when then run upstairs, I spent most of the time wondering why they didn't just kill the bad person.

I'm not sure if this was a lockdown film but let's face it most of those were rubbish and if this wasnt then the only reason it's a bad film must be because of the director and script.

Mel Gibson must think his target audience for flight risk is five years old. Now I like movies where you just turn your brain off and enjoy the ridiculousness but this was just sad. So many stupid incorrect and just absurd aviation moments. The fact that the agent lady had Wahlberg's character restrained twice and he got away twice. I mean she had all the handcuffs and zip ties she could ever want and still couldn't tie him securely. I liked Topher's character I think he was entertaining. Mark Wahlbergs bald cap makeup job was so poorly done I couldn't even pay attention to the movie when he was on screen. This movie could have been a solid entertaining flick but its like it was made by a 5 year old and nobody corrected their errors. I mean why not spend a few bucks and hire an aviation consultant so at least you won't look so dumb Mel?? If they would have corrected all the absurd aviation things it would have been much better. So I ask the most important question...Was I entertained? No, I was too busy screaming at the screen.

It's not a high concept movie by any stretch. But, it is an entertaining flick. And, it's the first time Wahlberg has played an actual bad guy since 1996's Fear. And not to give anything away, but damn, his character gets taken to task to say the least.

Topher Grace is...Topher Grace in this movie. His character really could've been played by any number of actors. The same could be said for the actress who played the FBI agent. But in reality, none of the characters actually required in depth character study or to be standout. It was just a matter of getting actors to sign onto the film who could competently pull off the scenes.

So again, it's a decent film overall. I don't think anyone will walk out feeling disappointed or angry about spending their time or money watching it. And as run of the mill as it is, it's still better than what's being nominated for an Academy award this year.

I wasn't even going to go see this film after seeing the preview. It just looked so standard in the ad, and I felt it gave away too much of the story. Then I noticed it was directed by Mel. So, I thought why not, I've seen everything else he's directed. So I used my points to go see it, and I must say. I think it definitely is a little better than how it comes across in the ad. The filmmaking is definitely solid. The film creates some fairly tense moments, even though it's one of those films where you sort of have an idea as to how it will likely end. It is a fairly straightforward and simple film for sure. However it is well made, and the script is definitely not as unintelligently written as most Hollywood films these days. The dialogue is perhaps a little harsh for some, but that actually also helps this film build the decent amount of tension that it needs to work reasonably well. I definitely don't regret going to see it on the big screen. For many people, this will be worth a watch for sure.

I think Mel may have taken this project in order to help fund his own passion projects, and why not? They definitely made a decent little film out of this in my view. In fact, I'd say it's a fairly good date movie if you all can handle some creepy dialogue and a little bit of gore.

What is also refreshing about this script, is that even though a female has a major role in the film. The script doesn't enter into any of these overly naive and ridiculous political narratives that so many other Hollywood films these days do. If I see another one of those films, I'm going to be sick right in the theatre. So look out people.

6.5/10.