Whether by plane, train, or automobile, there are plenty of ways to get around the world and plenty of stories to tell about the journey. Since the creation of the first aircraft, humanity has been captivated by the sights and sounds of flight as seemingly impossible objects to take the sky.
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Cinema and the birth of modern aviation are tightly intertwined, and countless movies have addressed air travel in one way or another. Stories of rookie pilots earning their wings, veterans doing their best to fight through a storm, and unlucky passengers trying to survive deadly circumstances after a crash abound. Some films merely touch on flight, while others make it the centerpiece. Here are some of the best films to take place on a plane.
8Airplane!
1980’sAirplane!is as purea spoof and screwball comedyas there can be. It’s about pilots trying to land their airplane after passengers get food poisoning, but the plot is the least important part of the film.What matters here are the brilliant comedic performances from this phenomenal cast.
Airplane!is one of the most quotable movies of all time thanks to the expert writing of Jim Abrahams and Jerry and David Zucker, all of whom collaborated on the film’s direction as well. This surrealistic journey into slapstick comedy is considered by many to be one of the funniest films of all time, and it has no problem holding up decades after its debut.
7The Aviator
Famed director Martin Scorsese is known for long, elaborate, meticulously crafted films, andThe Aviatoris no exception. This biopic of wealthy filmmaker and aircraft enthusiast Howard Hughes has a runtime of almost three hours. Fortunately, the film uses its time well.
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Hughes, played by Leonardo DiCaprio, was a fascinating man and makes for a fascinating character.The film depicts his struggle with obsessive-compulsive disorder, his film career, his Hollywood romances, and–above all else–his fascination with and love of flying. The film is, among many other things, a love letter to aviation.
6Red Eye
Wes Craven is known for the production ofinfamous horror movies such asA Nightmare on Elm Street,Scream,andThe Last House on the Left,so when the directed decided to shoot a movie about air travel, it was all but guaranteed there would be something sinister happening beneath the surface.
Red Eyeis about two strangers who meet at an airport bar and then find themselves seated next to one another on their flight,a situation that takes a turn for the terrifying when it’s revealed that one is a domestic terrorist.Cillian Murphy’s portrayal of Jackson is fabulously creepy and the highlight of the film, though Rachel McAdams is strong in her own right.
5Sully
Captain Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger, the real-life pilot responsible for 2009’s “Miracle on the Hudson” in which he splash-landed his plane in the Hudson River, quickly became a folk hero to many, and the story ultimately became a biopic with the heroic pilot played by none other than Tom Hanks.
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Hanks’s performance is as stellar as one would expect,and director Clint Eastwood does a phenomenal job at squeezing every available drop of drama from the incident. Though the film takes some liberties with the true story, the result is a nail-biting look at why even ordinary flights can become harrowing in an instant.
4Con Air
Few would argue thatCon Airis a perfect film, but it’s undeniably a great one. Nicholas Cage, a plane full of convicted criminals–each with a personality more colorful than the last–anda quotable if flawed scriptmake the film as silly as it is fun.
John Malkovich as Cyrus “The Virus” Grissom is the only actor capable of matching and even topping Cage,and watching the energy between the two is great.Con Airis a delightful B-movie thriller, with all that description entails, and while it doesn’t have much to offer aviation junkies looking for a deep dive into their hobby, it’s a blast for everyone else.
3Flight
Denzel Washington is one of a handful of actors that seems to turn every role he touches into a master class in acting. InFlighthe plays Whip Whitaker, an alcoholic pilot who crash lands a plane but manages to save almost everyone on board, only to undergo extensive public and legal scrutiny.
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Far more than being just another plane crash movie,Flightis a nuanced exploration of what it’s like to live with alcoholism.It’s a subject that would be easy to fumble, either by demonizing the character, making him too shallow, or pretending away certain hard truths.Flightavoids all of these pitfalls, in large part thanks to Washington’s phenomenal performance, elevating the entire film to one of the best in its genre.
2Top Gun
1986’sTop Gunmay be better remembered by many as the source of endless internet memes, but that doesn’t detract anything from the fun and excitement of the original film. Goose (Anthony Edwards) andMaverick (Tom Cruise)are Navy pilots training at the Top Gun academy, a serious endeavor that apparently leaves ample time for shirtless beach volleyball.
However quirky the film is,it still contains some of the best aerial sequences in cinema.It doesn’t hurt that it’s also an exquisite time capsule of ’80s culture and more than a little quotable. The countless memes surrounding the film exist for good reason, after all.
1Air Force One
Harrison Ford is beloved by many as Han Solo and Indiana Jones, but the actor has had a long and varied career outside those iconic franchises.Air Force Oneis a terrific example of the actor’s chops: Ford is the President of the United States, but the dignity of his office isn’t enough to keep him from punching a terrorist in the face when Air Force One is hijacked.
The film makes the intelligent decision to abandon realism in favor of the Rule of Cool,letting Ford get away with all manner of nonsense as long as it’s exciting. The bet pays off, makingAir Force Onea great action film as well as a great plane film.
