Air Force One (1997)
A movie review by Michael J. Legeros Copyright 1997 by Michael J. Legeros
(Columbia)
Directed by Wolfgang Petersen
Written by Andrew W. Marlowe
Cast Harrison Ford, Gary Oldman, Glenn Close, Wendy Crewson,
Liesel Matthews, Paul Guilfoyle, Xander Berkeley,
William H. Macy, Dean Stockwell, Jurgen Prochnow
MPAA Rating "R" (presumably for violence and profanity)
Running Time 125 minutes
Reviewed at The Carmike 7, Raleigh, NC (25JUL97)
==
Well, once again, a summer movie has surprised me. This time, it's AIR FORCE ONE, which is the long-sit of the season that *I* didn't see coming. As the trailers have trumpeted for the last six months, Har- rison Ford plays President Ass Kicker, a Chief Executive who has to make like Kurt Russell making like Steven Seagal making like Bruce Willis, when *his* plane is hijacked by Russian loyalists. (The Commander in Chief is hurried into the escape pod, but chooses to hang around, be- cause his wife and daughter are still aboard and, friends, that's one family you just don't go messin' with.) Director Wolfgang Petersen (IN THE LINE OF FIRE, DAS BOOT) is a bonafide master of claustrophobic com- bat, I'll give him that. We're always aware of the bad guys, no matter what curtain they're hiding behind. (Is the President's 747 really that big on the inside?) And, with the help of visual effects supervisor Richard Edlund, Petersen also pulls off a couple of breathtaking aerial sequences. (An aborted landing at Ramstein Air Base is an early show stopper. Cool crash trucks, too.)
The problem-- well, one of them-- is that Petersen serves up a few too many crises. Three too many, to be exact. Sure, the action, when it finally gets rockin' and rolling, is a welcome relief to a talky first hour. But do we really need to wrap with attacking fighters *and* an aerial rescue *and* one last, lurking bad guy? Sigh. The ending also boasts the weakest special effects in the movie, including some obviously computer-generated water wonders. (All of which, like the rest of the scenes, are accompanied by Jerry Goldsmith's head-pounding score. Please pass the aspirin.) Another big botch is the choice of villains. Really, the motives of the terrorists-- whose soft-spoken leader (Gary Oldman) seeks the release of an imprisoned general-- are as patriotic as any American character in the movie. They've just chosen a more violent means to their end. (Well, almost. As Oldman's character takes pains to point out, the United States is quite fond of murder when it comes to protecting *their* interests. And "snap" goes another bad guy's neck.) All in all, AIR FORCE ONE gives a convincing illusion of being the most believable and ably constructed of the summer stock. Watch with your eyes open, however, and you might agree that it's just one more dumb, loud blockbuster.
Grade: B
--
Mike Legeros - Movie Hell http://www.nonvirtual.com/hell/
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