Flightplan Review

Highs

• As thrillers go, the plot that unfolds is relatively airtight- thanks to a sharp script by Peter A. Dowling and Billy Ray.
• Flightplan could have easily fallen apart in the hands of a lesser director. But Robert Schwentke, a filmmaker who hails from Germany, manages to skillfully keep things tense and intriguing throughout a film that takes place almost entirely on-board an airplane.
• Major kudos to the script for having characters who ask the questions they should be asking. There were several instances during the movie that I thought to myself, "Hey what about...." and within moments that very question was answered. For the unique circumstances that unfold, great care was taken in making things seem plausible.
• From ambient sounds to comments made by passengers, the film does a great job of accurately portraying what an actual flight is like.
• Like you would expect, Jodie Foster plays her part like a pro. And Peter Sarsgaard continues to prove my hypothesis that any film is made better by his involvement.

Lows

• Some people have said that the ending of the film ventured a bit too far into Steven Seagal territory. While I can see what they are basing this on, I felt like for the most part a great deal of restraint was used in the final scene. It's a very thin line that has to be walked in ending a thriller. On the one hand you don't want people to throw up there hands in a collective, "Oh c'mon!" And on the other you don't want people leaving the theatre let down by the ending. Personally, I was fine with how things turned out.
• A person could also question how much ruckus someone would be allowed to cause on a plane these days without being restrained to a seat for the remainder of the flight. I feel like for the most part Jodie Foster played her part perfectly; out of pure fear for her child's safety she pushes as hard as she can but also shows a great deal of constraint at times knowing what the consequences of her actions might be. Hey, maybe in the real world she would have been handcuffed to her seat a half hour into the film but I'm not interested in watching a movie about Jodie Foster boarding a plane.

Torrey's Opinion:
5- Strongly Recommended
4- Recommended
3- A Mixed Bag
2- Sub-par
1- Don't Bother

Random related fact: In reality, both Sean Bean and Peter Sarsgaard are terrified of flying.