7500 (2020) Review!!

Synopsis – A pilot’s aircraft is hijacked by terrorists.

My Take – Back in the 90s airplane hijack based films were a rage with films like Air Force One, Executive Decision and Passenger 57 leading the roster, mainly as they entertainingly blended our natural fears of flying and terrorism with our love and admiration of heroic people.

But following the 9/11 attack, possibly to avoid causing disrespect to the victims, films belonging to the sub-genre have strictly stuck to direct to DVD or VOD, with the occasional release like 2006’s United 93 (which recounted the hijacking and subsequent events of 9/11) and the Liam Neeson led actioner Non-Stop (2014) making it to cinemas worldwide.

While most of these films shared commonality with each other, and can be easily interchanged, this latest offering from Amazon Prime Video uses some of the familiar tropes we’ve come to expect, but also adds its own unique spin.

The twist being that the whole film takes place entirely inside a cockpit, at least until the final shot. Hence, joining ranks of single location set thrillers like Rope, Buried, Locke, Phone Booth, among others, making this public invasion in the sky feel very personal.

With Joseph Gordon-Levitt, who last appeared in Snowden (2016), and other actors improvising takes lasting up to 20 to 30 minutes. Here, writer-director Patrick Vollrath makes sure that not even a single minute offered is dull after all every passenger’s life is at stake of this terrifying scenario.

The story follows Tobias Ellis (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), an American co-pilot who along with Captain Michael Lutzman (Carlo Kitzlinger), is scheduled to fly the short flight from Berlin to Paris. It’s set to be a clear run with a small measure of iffy weather. His girlfriend and the mother of his young son, Gökce (Aylin Tezel), a Turkish air-hostess is also onboard, and is visible through the cockpit door, though their relationship is a secret kept from their employers and colleagues.

But not long after a smooth takeoff, a group of terrorists (Paul Wollin, Omid Memar and Murathan Muslu) rush the cockpit when the flight attendant is delivering water to the pilots in order to take control. However, a fight ensues resulting in injuries to both pilots. While Tobias manages to knock one of the terrorist out, the ones outside the cockpit begin to take the passengers hostages and threaten to kill them unless Tobias opens the door.

Thankfully the locked, bullet-proof entryway seems pretty darn impossible to bust open. These terrorists, however, appear bound and determined, so the danger is close, and the continuous battering on steel ends up rattling our nerves.

The film begins by showing us airport security footage following certain people who turn out to be terrorists and cuts directly to the time when the pilots have entered the cockpit. You see the entire plane from that view and even the happenings during the course of this film can be seen through a tiny screen inside the cockpit. It is in these moments when you will feel trapped. And with the camera almost always on Tobias you struggle with him mentally as he has a very difficult decision to make between saving hostages on the plane by opening the door or following protocol and focusing on landing the plane.

With a bare-bones script, cast frequently improvise their lines, as director Vollrath very much succeeds in ratcheting up the type of static tension seen in one location set thrillers. The limited space provides a claustrophobic atmosphere and really places us in the middle of Tobias’ fight to keep the plane in the air.

Within the film’s established boundaries, cinematographer Sebastian Thaler cultivates effective claustrophobia through shooting in much closer quarters with much tighter angles than are necessary, making the cockpit seem even smaller than it really is. Shots seem forever bordered by walls or furniture, effectively making the audience feel like they’re an intruder into this space, craning their neck and getting in the way.

It’s not ground-breaking stuff, but you can’t knock it for its effectiveness. More than anything, the film serves as a calling card for director Vollrath, who previously scored an Oscar nominee in Best Live Action Short Film for Everything Will Be Okay, displays immense talent as he steps into helming features.

However, not all choices work here. For example, in a lack of creative casting, the Islamic terrorists are mostly Arab with the vague notion of using the flight as retribution for Western sins. Some of the events transpiring felt a bit too coincidental and there is a certain disconnect with the outside world, which may be off putting for some viewers.

Yet, through it all, the one aspect of the film that holds everything together is Joseph Gordon-Levitt‘s strong central performance that truly carries the film through its less turbulent moments. With little dialogue and back story to work with, Gordon-Levitt fully commits to the experience, bouncing between quiet introspection and exhausting despair. A film this simple lives and dies on the watchability and likeability of its lead, and Gordon-Levitt was a shrewd casting.

Omid Memar is also quite solid here as the youngest hijacker. Manipulated and overwhelmed, he’s Ellis’s best shot at listening to reason. Memar hyperventilates and screams until his throat is raw, the vulnerability of his eyes betraying his words. In smaller roles, Aylin Tezel, Carlo Kitzlinger, Paul Wollin, and Murathan Muslu are also effective, though they don’t have enough screen time. On the whole, ‘7500’ is a well-paced thriller that offers a unique viewing experience by placing extreme intensity in close-quarters.