Executive Decision (1996)

When terrorists seize control of an airliner, an intelligence analyst accompanies a commando unit for a midair boarding operation.

Director:

Stuart Baird

Writers:

Jim Thomas, John Thomas

Stars:

Kurt Russell, Steven Seagal, Halle Berry

2 wins & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Kurt Russell	...	Dr. David Grant
Steven Seagal	...	Lt. Colonel Austin Travis
Halle Berry	...	Jean, Flight Attendant
John Leguizamo	...	Rat
Oliver Platt	...	Dennis Cahill
Joe Morton	...	Sergeant 'Cappy' Matheny
BD Wong	...	Sergeant Louie
Len Cariou	...	Secretary of Defense Charles White
Whip Hubley	...	Sergeant Baker
Andreas Katsulas	...	El Sayed Jaffa
Mary Ellen Trainor	...	Allison, Flight Attendant
Marla Maples	...	Nancy, Flight Attendant (as Marla Maples Trump)
J.T. Walsh	...	Senator Mavros
Ingo Neuhaus	...	Doc
William James Jones	...	Catman

Storyline

Terrorists take over a 747 bound from Athens to Washington D.C., supposedly to effect the release of their leader. Intelligence expert David Grant suspects another reason and convinces the military that the 'plane should not be allowed to enter U.S. airspace. An assault mission is devised, using a specially equipped 'plane designed for mid-air crew transfers, and Grant finds himself aboard the 747 with a team of military anti-terrorists who have to defuse a bomb and overpower the terrorists.

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Plot Keywords:

terrorist | bomb | jet | hostage | washington d.c. | 

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Taglines:

Five miles above the earth, an elite team of six men must make an air to air transfer, in order to save 400 lives on board a 747... and 40 million below.

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for violence and brief language

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

15 March 1996 (USA)

Also Known As:

Critical Decision

Filming Locations:

Alverno High School - 200 North Michillinda Avenue, Sierra Madre, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$55,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

JPY 320,462,900 (Japan) (15 November 1996)

Gross:

JPY 153,472,300 (Japan) (29 November 1996)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros., Silver Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

133 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Don Burgess reportedly stepped in as cinematographer when producer Joel Silver thought Alex Thomson was working too slowly.

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Goofs

The intercepting F-14s do not follow normal intercept procedure of approaching from the rear to either side, this allows for missile lock and to keep the target from seeing the planes from too far away before contact is made. They certainly wouldn't just cut across the nose like that.

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Quotes

[as Jean shows a seat number to the hidden camera]
Dr. David Grant, Sergeant Baker: 2, 1, K... 21K!

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Connections

Referenced in Die Another Day (2002)

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Soundtracks

"IT'S NICE TO GO TRAV'LING"
Written by Sammy Cahn and James Van Heusen
Performed by Frank Sinatra
Courtesy of Capitol Records
Under Licence from CEMA Special Markets

User Reviews

Suspense and plot twists for everyone...

I enjoyed this one. Sure there were some implausible things: the speed of the counter-action, the strange fact that a complete change of the aerodynamics of a stealth bomber seems to cause zero disturbance... But all in all it was well within bearable limits. Don't expect to see a 100% realistic plot in a movie that is supposed to contain heros! In reality, they usually get shot or explode before they have the chance to become one :-)

Critical Decisions has a more than adequate mix of suspense, better-than-horrible acting, plot twists and mild humor to relieve the tension. Whereas a lot of movies in the same genre totally screw up one or more of those aspects. I'm thinking about the terribly balanced "humor" in The Rock, for example. Killing all tension and involvement..

8/10

JoH