BEFORE: Sticking with the theme of U.S. Presidents, but switching from comedy to action -
THE PLOT: Hijackers seize the plane carrying the President of the United States and his family, but he (an ex-soldier) works from hiding to defeat them.
AFTER: Good thing they mentioned that President Marshall used to be a soldier and a helicopter pilot, or his skills in fighting the terrorists wouldn't be so believable...
Harrison Ford plays the President, and Gary Oldman plays the lead terrorist - I'll go along with the casting. Oldman always does well as villains, and does a convincing Russian (sorry, Kazahkstani) accent. And Ford, of course, has all the skills he learned as Indiana Jones and Han Solo - so fighting off the villains and landing the Millennium Falcon - sorry, Air Force One - should be no problem, right?
The terrorists, disguised as a Soviet news crew, have an inside man as a double-agent, so they take over the plane and hold hostage its crew and passengers, including the President's wife and daughter. Meanwhile the Vice-President (Glenn Close) has to decide whether to negotiate with the terrorists, declare the President unfit to serve, or just wait it out.
Very action-packed and entertaining, I enjoyed this one. Didn't plan on buying it or anything, but it came on a $5 DVD in a double-feature with "In the Line of Fire". Now I think I have to add a few more Harrison Ford films to my list, like "Patriot Games" and "Clear and Present Danger" - wouldn't you know, they're both running on premium channels this week...
Also starring William H. Macy as the plane's navigator, Paul Guilfoyle (last seen in "Primary Colors"), and a few other "Hey, it's THAT guy!" character actors like Dean Stockwell, Philip Baker Hall and Elya Baskin (poor guy, after the fall of the Soviet Empire, he can only get work playing Spider-Man's landlord...)
RATING: 8 out of 10 parachutes
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