Plane Review: Gerard Butler Rules the Sky in Tense Thriller

A pilot (Gerard Butler) defends his passengers from militants after a crash landing.

Gerard Butler rules the sky in a tense and unrelenting action-thriller. Plane takes off into a storm but experiences far worse consequences from land-based threats. French director Jean-François Richet keeps a firm grip on the throttle. He establishes a straightforward premise before plunging his characters into non-stop mortal peril. It’s an out-of-the-frying-pan and into-the-fire scenario. The initial relief of escaping a harrowing crash landing evaporates when another crisis presents itself. Ruthless baddies show no mercy to innocents. Their butt-kicking pilot makes sure a seemingly cursed flight arrives alive.

Captain Brodie Torrance (Butler) races to the gate in Singapore. He’s eager to reunite with his teenage daughter (Haleigh Hekking) in Hawaii. A pair of events unnerve Torrance as the passengers board. Bad weather looms on the flight path to Tokyo. He’s given permission to fly above the storm despite misgivings. Also, law enforcement has captured a murderer on the run for fifteen years. Louis Gaspare (Mike Colter) is handcuffed in the back row for extradition to the United States.

The first officer (Claro de los Reyes) has faith in Torrance’s skill. That’s immediately tested as turbulence rocks the plane. Passengers whimper as Torrance raises altitude. Calm turns to terror when lightning strikes. Bonnie (Daniella Pineda), the head flight attendant, screams for everyone to remain seated. The foolish ignore her order.

Brace for Impact

The aircraft loses power. All electronic instruments have failed. The plane begins a rapid descent over a vast ocean. They have ten minutes before plummeting to certain death. Torrance yells for the passengers to prepare for a water landing. A patch of green with a winding road miraculously appears through the blinding rain. Everyone braces for impact. But the remote island of Jolo isn’t a safe haven. An anti-government militia watches as a fresh batch of western hostages crashes in the jungle.

Related: Exclusive: Latest Plane Image Showcases Gerard Butler in a War-Torn Jungle

Plane is guaranteed to never be a part of your inflight entertainment. The opening scene will scare the bejesus out of anyone nervous about flying. My pulse raced as oxygen masks dropped and the unbelted hit the ceiling like cracked eggs. Slick visual effects, editing, and the characters’ abject fear sell the precipitous decline. Richet (Assault on Precinct 13, Blood Father) cuts back and forth between the cockpit and cabin calamity. The sense of doom reaches a fever pitch. This sets the stage for the bullet-riddled remaining acts.

Revolting terrorists seize a golden opportunity. The passengers are worth a fortune in ransom money. Torrance finds himself in a desperate situation. No one knows where they are. He has to get help without getting captured. That’s no easy feat with bloodthirsty militants swarming. Gaspare becomes another point of concern. Is the murderer friend or foe?

A Trusted Action Commodity

Butler gives Torrance believability in every circumstance. He’s fantastic flying the plane, calming the frightened passengers, and then strapping on an assault rifle to take care of business. He has an emotional range with gravitas and a dominating physical presence. Important elements that accompany wicked gunplay to overall success. Butler continues to be a trusted action commodity.

Plane is a production of MadRiver Pictures, Olive Hill Media, Di Bonaventura Pictures, and G-BASE. It will be released theatrically on January 13th from Lionsgate.