Flightplan Movie Review:


A terrifically edgy, moody tone completely draws us in and helps us overlook the endless stream of plot inconsistencies in this airborne thriller. And with Foster front and centre, it can't help but grip us from start to finish.

Kyle Pratt (Foster) is accompanying her recently deceased husband's body back to America from Berlin, where they lived. Still grieving, Kyle gently coaxes her 6-year-old daughter Julie (Lawston) onto the plane and assures her that America will be a good new home. Then after a nap, Kyle wakes up to find Julia missing. And both the pilot (Bean) and an air marshal (Sarsgaard) doubt she was ever on the plane to begin with. But like Julianne Moore in The Forgotten, Kyle isn't about to give up.

German director Schwentke (Tattoo) is extremely sure-handed, and Foster is his ace in the hole. She delivers a powerhouse performance in this relatively mindless thriller, balancing the emotion, suspense and mystery effortlessly, and taking us with her on this tortured journey. Schwentke puts us into her mind--we really suffer--avoiding mindless action cliches for something more realistic and personal, which lets the stupid storyline slips by unnoticed.

The supporting cast create strong characters as well, although there's never any doubt about what's really going on. Even the red herrings and obviously shifty figures don't distract us from the real dangers. And then there's the plane itself. Sure, this is a mythical model, a two-story E-474 loosely based on the mega-jumbo currently in production, but it's absolutely fascinating to see how many places there are on board to hide things!

It's entertaining just watching the characters scurry here and there, above and below the passenger decks through secret hatches. So it's unlikely this will ever be an in-flight movie. Where it falters will be in any post-film discussion--hours of fun as you find one gaping hole after another, none of which I can mention here of course. It's a profoundly stupid plot, once you think about it. The amazing feat is that, while the film has you in its grasp, you barely notice. Genius.



Rich Cline

Returning her husband’s body to the US after he died in an accident, Kyle (Foster) and Julia (Lawston) board the plane to head home. As they both try to cope with their grief, the mother and daughter try and get some sleep during the long journey between Berlin and New York. When Kyle awakes however she finds that Julia is missing and after she frantically searches the cabin, the flight crew try to calm her down. Getting the Captain (Bean) involved, the crew reveal that they don’t even remember Julia coming on board so it is up to Kyle to prove that her daughter even existed.

Enclosed, insular thrillers usually breed suspense and tension but can ‘Flightplan’ fly or crash trying?

Jodie Foster doesn’t make many films as of late but when she does the movie community seems to take notice and her role in ‘Flightplan’ is no different. As the recently widowed engine designer, who is returning her husband’s body to New York from Germany, she brings much more to the film than the flimsy plot deserves. Always playing a strong female character, Foster drives the film along, through its twists and turns to its very typically Hollywood conclusion but her performance makes the movie much more than it should have been.

A star of Foster’s magnitude usually attracts a strong supporting cast and ‘Flightplan’ is no different. Instead of big name actors however, the filmmakers have gathered together some excellent character actors to accompany her. A rising star that is known for his acting talent, Peter Sarsgaard provides outstanding supporting support to Foster. Even when the film falls into cliché, his performance elevates, combined with Foster’s, make the finale a lot more watchable than it should have been. Sean Bean continues to make inroads into Hollywood with another fine supporting role but this won’t propel him to leading man status anytime soon. Kate Beahan does a good job as stewardess Stephanie but Erika Christensen is completely wasted as fellow trolley-dolly Fiona.

Even an accomplished lead and an impressive supporting cast cannot make up for the many plot shortcomings. The main problem is that lack of an explanation behind the motivation of the main plot device. As the film twist and turns towards the final act, the story rightly throws up many red herrings to keep you guessing but when the reveal happens in the final act the film descends into typically Hollywood cliché. This complete lack of imagination ruins all the good work that has gone before.

‘Flightplan’ isn’t a bad thriller but you do expect something more than something run of the mill with Jodie Foster involved. Entertaining until the clichéd final act, this is still watchable, simply because of the quality of Jodie Foster and Peter Sarsgaard’s performances. It takes off, has a bit of turbulence but then it is a shock free, predictable flight until the safe landing.

Jamie Kelwick

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