Air Force One (1997)

Director:

Wolfgang Petersen

Writer (WGA):

Andrew W. Marlowe (written by)

Release Date:

25 July 1997 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Drama | Thriller

Tagline:

Harrison Ford is the President of the United States.

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.

Plot Keywords:

Terrorist | Hostage | General | Terrorism | U.S. President

Awards:

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 7 wins & 9 nominations

Cast

Harrison Ford	...	President James Marshall
Gary Oldman	...	Ivan Korshunov
Glenn Close	...	Vice President Kathryn Bennett
Wendy Crewson	...	Grace Marshall
Liesel Matthews	...	Alice Marshall
Paul Guilfoyle	...	Chief of Staff Lloyd 'Shep' Shepherd
Xander Berkeley	...	Secret Service Agent Gibbs
William H. Macy	...	Major Caldwell
Dean Stockwell	...	Defense Secretary Walter Dean
Tom Everett	...	National Security Advisor Jack Doherty
Jürgen Prochnow	...	General Ivan Radek
Donna Bullock	...	Deputy Press Secretary Melanie Mitchel
Michael Ray Miller	...	Colonel Axelrod
Carl Weintraub	...	Lt. Colonel Ingraham
Elester Latham	...	AFO Navigator

Also Known As:

AFO
Air Force One (Germany)

MPAA:

Rated R for violence.

Runtime:

124 min

Country:

USA | Germany

Language:

English | Russian

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Netherlands:12 | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) | Canada:14A (British Columbia) | Canada:AA (Ontario) | Canada:PA (Manitoba) | Canada:PG (Alberta) | Philippines:PG-13 | New Zealand:M | Australia:M | Brazil:14 | Finland:K-16 | France:U | Germany:16 (w) | Iceland:14 (original rating) | Iceland:16 (video rating) | Mexico:B | Norway:15 | Portugal:M/12 | Singapore:PG | South Korea:15 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | USA:R (certificate #34790)

Filming Locations:

Beverly Hills, California, USA

Company:

Columbia Pictures Corporation

Trivia:

The Russian prison where Radek is held during the movie was filmed at the Mansfield Reformatory, the same location as the prison in The Shawshank Redemption (1994).

Goofs:

Factual errors: The in-flight refueling hardware on the real Air Force One makes a bulge visible below the cockpit window. The Boeing 747 used in the film lacks this bulge. There are numerous other differences between the plane depicted in the movie and the real Air Force One. See also the trivia entry.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Major Perkins: [after landing in Kazakstan] Quick head count! One, two, three, four, five. Move out!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Bones: The Soldier on the Grave (#1.21)" (2006)

Soundtrack:

L'Internationale

Good Solid Fun

An Action movie is made to entertain, and should always be taken at face value. With this in mind Air Force One hits the mark, despite some minor flaws it still delivers tension, drama and action in abundance.

The cast is strong and full of believable characters, the story is compelling and the traditional dose of sentiment is added sparingly and to good effect. Harrison Ford and Gary Oldman both put in solid performances and they are well supported by the likes of Glenn Close and Wendy Crewson.

Overall Air Force One is an safe bet for the average movie fan and should entertain most, without ever really excelling.

7/10