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, Halle Berry, Steven Seagal

2 wins & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Kurt Russell	...	David Grant
Steven Seagal	...	Lt. Colonel Austin Travis
Halle Berry	...	Jean
John Leguizamo	...	Rat
Oliver Platt	...	Cahill
Joe Morton	...	Cappy
David Suchet	...	Nagi Hassan
BD Wong	...	Louie (as B. D. Wong)
Len Cariou	...	Secretary of Defense Charles White
Whip Hubley	...	Baker
Andreas Katsulas	...	Jaffa
Mary Ellen Trainor	...	Allison
Marla Maples	...	Nancy (as Marla Maples Trump)
J.T. Walsh	...	Senator Mavros
Ingo Neuhaus	...	Doc

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.

---

Plot Keywords:

panic | survival | stealth plane | mission | disaster film | 

---

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.

---

Genres:

Action | Adventure | Thriller

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for violence and brief language

Did You Know?

Trivia

Sergeant Baker, played by Whip Hubley, pays a memorable backhanded compliment to the Navy F-14 pilots at a crucial point in the movie. Hubley previously played a Navy F-14 fighter pilot in Top Gun (1986).

---

Goofs

The computer navigation display on the Hail Mary plane shows its route doubling back by about 1,000 miles, requiring it to catch up with the 747 over that distance. This would waste a great deal of precious time and no reason is given for doing it.

---

Quotes

Nagi Hassan: Allah has chosen us for a task far greater than Jaffa's freedom. We are the true soldiers of Islam. Our destiny is to deliver the vengeance of Allah into the belly of the infidel.
Ahmed: This has nothing to do with Islam. This is not Allah's will. You're blinded by hatred.

---

Alternate Versions

The UK cinema, video and DVD versions have two small cuts. First, during the attack at the beginning of the film there are cuts to the use of the knife by the 'Steven Seagal (I)' character, on three of the bad guys. Another strange cut occurs on the plane during the hijack. Al Tar, the David Suchet character, is seen rising from a praying position to answer a phone call from the cockpit. The UK version shows him answering the phone only, you do not know he has been praying.

---

Connections

References Top Gun (1986)

---

Soundtracks

It's Nice to Go Trav'ling
Written by Sammy Cahn and Jimmy Van Heusen (as James Van Heusen)
Performed by Frank Sinatra
Courtesy of Capitol Records
Under Licence from CEMA Special Markets

User Reviews

Escapism with a touch of reality

I saw this in 1996 and thought it was extremely entertaining--an action movie with emphasis on suspense over shoot-em-up thrillers and explosions. Seeing it again, after the events in the past 4 years, is a different experience. Some of the fictional dialog has actually been quoted by fanatics in the news. I had the same reaction with Black Sunday with Robert Shaw. A movie meant as pure escapism is now more like "what if." Executive Decision does ask you to suspend disbelief several times, especially near the end. I would rank it up with Air Force One, which came out a year later and delivers the same type of "suspense over explosions" entertainment. And this film deserves extra kudos for making the ones that save the world a bit on the "misfit" side (Oliver Platt, John Leguizamo, Joe Morton, BD Wong, and yes, even Kurt Russell). Another nice slimy role for late character actor JT Walsh. And David Suchet makes a scary villain. Like the best villains (Alan Rickman from Die Hard comes to mind), he can be charming and terrifying at the same time.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Arabic

Release Date:

15 March 1996 (USA)

Also Known As:

Executive Action

Filming Locations:

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

Box Office

Budget:

$55,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$12,069,780, 17 March 1996

Gross USA:

$56,569,216

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$121,969,216

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros., Silver Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

133 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby SDDS

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1