Hey Webmasters! New Photo Album Service Launched - Check it out!
Have you ever been so convinced of a truth that everyone else believes is a lie? How can you know what reality and truth are? How would you know?
Two-time Academy-Award winner Jodie Foster (Silence of the Lambs, The Accused) is a recent widow flying back to the States with her daughter after living in Germany for several years working as an airplane engineer.
Three hours into the flight, she awakens to find her daughter missing with nobody having remembered even seeing her. Her name is missing from the passenger manifest. Her boarding pass is gone. Her backpack is gone from the overhead compartment. Only her teddy bear remains in her seat.
| |
Foster delivers as a woman trying desperately prove through some shred of evidence the existence of her daughter as all evidence starts to point to the fact that she perished with her father.
Director Robert Schwentke keeps the adrenaline pumping through unexpected twists and real-life post 9-11 air security protocols in response to mid-air threats; even bringing in tensions with Arabs. Flightplan is a top-notch thriller most of the way. It does keep you guessing with several plot twists up until about the three-quarter mark. From there the adrenaline changes from testing reality to a life-and-death, good-versus-evil fight or flight until the end.
Of course writers Peter A. Dowling and Billy Ray have helped Schwentke out with many of the thrills with their excellent script. However, they do leave several questions unanswered, such as why Foster’s character was living in Germany or for how long or why her daughter has a perfect American accent, when she’s apparently been living in Germany nearly all of her 6-year-old life (although this maybe more of casting fault than writing). There were also other things, central to the plot, that weren’t as clear as they could have been.
Other notes about the writing is that it is convenient that she just happens to be an engineer who designed a main component for this brand new double-decker jet airliner and thus knows all the nooks and crannies of it.
While this performance probably won’t win Foster another Oscar—it just is not that type of film—she still was excellent in the role of a woman bent on proving that the truth is beyond the facts presented her.
Peter Sarsgaard (Skeleton Key) stars as the in-flight air marshal trying to help her through her concern while watching out for on-board security problems. Sarsgaard turns in a fine performance as well as a man apparently trying to look out for the safety of everyone aboard.
Sean Bean (National Treasure, LOTR: Fellowship of the Ring) is the captain trying desperately to watch out for the safety of 430 passengers while a seemingly delusional woman demands he have his crew search the entire plane. Certainly a versatile actor as it becomes hard to see the brash Boramir from LOTR in the smug British captain he plays here.
Film newcomer Marlene Lawton stars as Foster’s missing daughter. From what we actually see of her in the film, she appears to be a capable young actress. Her roll was actually quite a difficult one as she had to show through facial expressions and her quiet voice, the pain she was hiding behind her eyes over losing her father.
This film, while not perfect, certainly is worth your money at the box office, and is even worth seeing a second time to see the facts you learn at the end actually fit the plot.
Bravenet Blog 
Blog Community
Get a Free Blog
Manage your Blog