Con Air (1997)

Director:

Simon West

Writer (WGA):

Scott Rosenberg (written by)

Release Date:

6 June 1997 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Crime | Thriller

Tagline:

One wrong flight can ruin your whole day

Plot:

A newly released ex-con and former US Ranger finds himself trapped in a prisoner transport plane when the passengers seize control.

Plot Keywords:

Convict | Prison | Criminal | Escape | Diabetic

Awards:

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 6 wins & 8 nominations

Cast

Nicolas Cage	...	Cameron Poe
John Cusack	...	U.S. Marshal Vince Larkin
John Malkovich	...	Cyrus 'The Virus' Grissom
Ving Rhames	...	Nathan 'Diamond Dog' Jones
Nick Chinlund	...	William 'Billy Bedlam' Bedford
Steve Buscemi	...	Garland 'The Marietta Mangler' Greene
Colm Meaney	...	DEA Agent Duncan Malloy
Rachel Ticotin	...	Guard Sally Bishop
Dave Chappelle	...	Joe 'Pinball' Parker
Mykelti Williamson	...	Mike 'Baby-O' O'Dell
Danny Trejo	...	Johnny 'Johnny-23' Baca
M.C. Gainey	...	Swamp Thing
Steve Eastin	...	Guard Falzon
Renoly Santiago	...	Ramon 'Sally-Can't Dance' Martinez (as Renoly)
Monica Potter	...	Tricia Poe

Also Known As:

Con Air (Austria) (Germany) [de]
A fegyencjárat (Hungary) [hu]
Air bagnards (Canada: French title) [fr]
Apodrasi ston aera (Greece) [el]
Con Air (Czech Republic) [cs]
Con Air (Turkey: Turkish title) [tr]
Con Air (Italy) [it]
Con Air - A Rota da Fuga (Brazil) [pt]
Con Air: convictos en el aire (Spain) [es]
Con air - Lento vapauteen (Finland) [fi]
Fortaleza Voadora (Portugal) [pt]
Les ailes de l'enfer (France) [fr]
Letalo prekletih (Slovenia) [sl]
Lot skazanców (Poland) [pl]
Riesgo en el aire (Mexico) [es]
Vanglaekspress (Estonia) [et]

MPAA:

Rated R for strong violence and language.

Runtime:

115 min | USA:123 min (extended version)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS (8 channels)

Certification:

USA:R (certificate #35192) | Iceland:16 | Ireland:18 | Germany:16 (extended version) (2006) | Germany:18 (original rating) | France:-12 | Finland:K-16 (uncut) (video premiere) | Finland:K-16 (DVD version) (cut) | Netherlands:12 (TV rating) | Netherlands:16 (original rating) | Philippines:PG-13 | Singapore:NC-16 (unrated DVD version) | Brazil:16 | Argentina:16 | Australia:MA | Belgium:KNT | Canada:16+ (Quebec) | Canada:18 (Nova Scotia) | Canada:R (Manitoba/Ontario) | Chile:14 | Denmark:15 | Italy:VM14 | New Zealand:R18 | Norway:15 | Portugal:M/12 | Singapore:PG | South Korea:15 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 (original rating) | UK:18 (video rating)

Filming Locations:

2nd Street Tunnel, Downtown, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Touchstone Pictures

Trivia:

While "Sweet Home Alabama" by Lynyrd Skynyrd is playing in the background, Garland Greene (Steve Buscemi) says: "Define irony: a bunch of idiots dancing around on a plane to a song made famous by a band that died in a plane crash." On October 20, 1977 Lynyrd Skynyrd's plane crashed. It was the model Convair 240.

Goofs:

Factual errors: When the plane lands in Carson City for the transfer of prisoners, the waiting guards have "Department of Prisons" across their backs while the bus that transported the prisoners says, "Bureau of Prisons". A government entity would use either "Department" or "Bureau" but never both to identify itself.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Officer at Leaving Ceremony: Army Rangers have a proud history. Since the 1700s, Rangers have led the way in every major confrontation in which the United States has been involved. You men are a credit to that fine heritage, and I'm sorry to see you go. But you've served your country well...

Movie Connections:

Spoofed in The New Guy (2002)

Soundtrack:

How Do I Live

Take the ride

Strap yourselves in, fasten your seatbelts and prepare for one of the most exhilarating thrill rides of your life as "Con Air" takes you on a two-hour adventure that includes an all-star cast, powerful action sequences and great direction. Everyone will be glad to learn that "Con Air" is an action film that is able to have a great story to accompany it.

Originality and believability are two more keys to the success of a film because if nobody believes the story, success can be thrown out the window. "Con Air" revolves around a plane carrying high-risk prisoners being transported to a maximum-security prison. However, the prisoners have other ideas.

Action films cannot survive without the right cast in place to portray the heroes and villains; therefore, the director must locate the right talent who has the correct chemistry to make it work. For "Con Air," the director chose five immensely and incredibly talented actors who fit this formula. Nicolas Cage, John Cusack, John Malkovich, Ving Rhames lead an all-star, stellar cast in "Con Air." Chemistry between cast members is key to the success of every movie. It didn't take long to realize these five actors contained a massive amount of chemistry.

Cage stars as Cameron Poe, a parolee on his way home to his wife and daughter until he runs into a problem and save the day. Cage is one of the most versatile actors I have come across. Playing everything from a romantic lead in "It Could Happen To You" and Moonstruck" to dramatic roles in "Leaving Las Vegas" and "Bringing Out The Dead" to comedic roles in "Trapped In Paradise" and "Guarding Tess." Cage is the ultimate action star combining all of these elements to bring home the role of Cameron Poe. For this reason, I'm proud to call him one of my favorite actors.

Monica Potter and young newcomer Landry Albright star as Cameron's wife and daughter to whom he is flying home to after being paroled. Potter's beauty radiates off the screen with such heat and force I almost melt.

She may not be a veteran, but Potter's poise, beauty, talent and presence has proven that she could be mistaken for one. I relish every opportunity I had to watch her on screen because I knew what I was seeing was something special. Potter is on the rise with awards in her future and great films on the horizon.

Albright's performance as Casey brought smiles to my face because she is one of the cutest and most talented newcomers to hit Hollywood in recent years. Albright may not have a lot of dialogue, but her presence on screen is a sight for sore eyes, her beauty is hypnotizing and her energy is electric.

Albright will have a long, bright future in acting if she decides to pursue the profession because she has the special sparkle in her eye and aura surrounding her. I can't wait to see her next film.

Malkovich is Cyrus 'The Virus' Grissom, the ringleader of the hijacking. Malkovich's face oozes with villainous intent, which is one of the reasons he is so great at playing one. With his role in "Con Air," he proves once again he is the best. Cyrus was calm, cool, and collected in the face of danger as he led his group of convicts.I have gained a new respect for Malkovich because I was able to see the true range and versatility he brought to the role.

However, the best was yet to come as I learned that the supporting cast was a welcome surprise. For example, Rhames is Nathan 'Diamond Dog' Jones, Cyrus' right hand man. Mykelti Williamson stars as Baby-O O'Dell, Poe's only friend on board "The Jailbird." John Cusack is Vince Larkin, a federal agent, who from the ground is doing his best to bring down the plane full of convicts. At odds with Larkin is Duncan Malloy, played by Colm Meaney.

Another aspect of "Con Air" I enjoyed was the writing because the film was able to tell a story with substance without letting the action take over. Creating great character development and story depth are just a few examples how the writers were able to win me over.

The special effects in "Con Air" is great that it made me feel as if were part of that flight right along with the convicts. I commend director Simon West, and producer Jerry Bruckheimer on how well they put together the action sequences and bringing together the tremendous cast without any clash of egos.

Finally, the one thing that signed, sealed, and delivered this movie was the signature song performed by Trisha Yearwood called "How Do I Live." It remains my favorite song even today, five years after "Con Air" was released.

This is an action packed film from start to finish that has a believable plot; as well as comedic moments at times with great one-liners by various actors. I urge everyone to see "Con Air" for a great action film with substance.