Terrorists hijack a 747 inbound to Washington D.C., demanding the release of their imprisoned leader. Intelligence expert David Grant (Kurt Russell) suspects another reason and he is soon the reluctant member of a special assault team that is assigned to intercept the plane and hijackers.

Credits: TheMovieDb.

Film Cast:

• David Grant: Kurt Russell
• Lt. Colonel Austin Travis: Steven Seagal
• Jean: Halle Berry
• Rat: John Leguizamo
• Cahill: Oliver Platt
• Cappy: Joe Morton
• Nagi Hassan: David Suchet
• Louie: BD Wong
• Secretary of Defense Charles White: Len Cariou
• Baker: Whip Hubley
• Jaffa: Andreas Katsulas
• Allison: Mary Ellen Trainor
• Nancy: Marla Maples
• Senator Mavros: J.T. Walsh
• Doc: Ingo Neuhaus
• Catman: William James Jones
• Secretary of State Jack Douglas: Nicholas Pryor
• General Price: Stanley Grover
• Admiral Lewis: Eugene Roche
• General Wood: Ken Jenkins
• General Sarlow: Charles Hallahan
• Gail: Dey Young
• Air Marshal: Richard Riehle
• Demou: Robert Apisa
• Ahmed: Granville Hatcher
• Kahlil: Christopher Maher
• Terrorist: Jay Tavare
• Terrorist: Ahmed Ahmed
• Terrorist: Shaun Toub
• Terrorist: Majed Ibrahim
• Terrorist: Jon Huertas
• Terrorist: Joey Naber
• 747 Captain: Ray Baker
• 747 First Officer: Michael Milhoan
• Flight Attendant: Julie Wright
• Flight Attendant: Sunni Boswell
• Assistant to Senator Mavros: Gregg Artz
• Little Girl: Yvonne Zima
• Assistant to Senator Mavros: Will Schaub
• Diabetic Woman: Marianne Muellerleile
• Beckings Institute Aide: Brad Blaisdell
• Remora Pilot: Don Fischer
• Flight Instructor: John Rixey Moore
• American Ambassador: Warren Munson
• American Embassy Duty Officer: Lance August
• CNN Reporter: Maggie Egan
• Spider: James C. Victor
• Bulldog: Tim Kelleher
• Fire Fighter: David Birznieks
• Fire Fighter: Paul Bollen
• London Maitre’D: Nick Jameson
• London Bomber: Juan Fernández
• Collins: Todd Jeffries
• Chechen: Joe Cook
• Chechen: Ilia Volok
• Yugoslavian Girl: Borovnisa Blervaque
• Arab Co-Pilot: Joseph Makkar
• Translator: Damon Lee
• London Hostess: Magdalene St. Michaels
• Diamond Smuggler: Robert Londberg
• FBI Agent: Edmond Brown
• Party Girl: Michelle Boudreau
• MP: Kurt Kohler

Film Crew:

• Editor: Stuart Baird
• Producer: Joel Silver
• Writer: Jim Thomas
• Writer: John Thomas
• Original Music Composer: Jerry Goldsmith
• Director of Photography: Alex Thomson
• Production Design: Terence Marsh
• Art Direction: William Cruse
• Set Decoration: Marvin March
• Costume Design: Louise Frogley
• Co-Producer: Karyn Fields
• Associate Producer: Spencer Franklin
• Editor: Derek Brechin
• Editor: Dallas Puett
• Editor: Kevin Stitt
• Editor: Frank J. Urioste
• Casting: Amanda Mackey
• Casting: Cathy Sandrich Gelfond
• Second Unit Director: Steve Perry
• Assistant Art Director: Robert Woodruff
• Construction Coordinator: Edward F. LaLone
• Leadman: Daril Alder
• Production Illustrator: Jack Johnson
• Set Designer: Bill Taliaferro
• Standby Painter: John Hinkle
• Additional Photography: Don Burgess
• Camera Operator: Ian Fox
• First Assistant Camera: Chuck Bemis
• Key Grip: Michael J. Coo
• Grip: Nico Bally
• Steadicam Operator: Gregory Lundsgaard
• Still Photographer: Frank Masi
• Costume Supervisor: Barry Francis Delaney
• Hairstylist: Audrey L. Anzures
• Key Hair Stylist: Kathryn Blondell
• Makeup Artist: Melanie Hughes
• Makeup Artist: Dennis Liddiard
• Carpenter: Wayne Lindholm
• Craft Service: Willie Radcliff
• Digital Effects Supervisor: Brad Kuehn
• Driver: Victor Anderson
• Camera Loader: Jason Garcia
• Post Production Supervisor: Debbi Bossi
• Propmaker: Michael W. Chase
• Property Master: Michael Papac
• Second Unit: Joel Chernoff
• Security: Lockheed Martin
• Special Effects Coordinator: Ken Pepiot
• Stand In: Cheryl Gilbert
• Stunt Coordinator: Dick Ziker
• Stunts: Pete Antico
• Transportation Captain: Vern Bautenhahn
• Transportation Coordinator: Gary Preece
• Unit Production Manager: Paul Moen
• Unit Publicist: Patti Hawn
• Visual Effects Editor: Miller Drake
• First Assistant Director: Denis L. Stewart
• Script Supervisor: Jeanne Byrd
• Color Timer: Bob Kaiser
• Gaffer: Leslie J. Kovacs
• Lighting Technician: Billy Craft
• Rigging Gaffer: Glenn Corbett
• Casting Associate: Elizabeth Lang
• Location Manager: Stuart Raven Barter
• Production Accountant: Thomas A. Davila
• Production Manager: Gil Gagnon
• Boom Operator: Bill King
• Assistant Sound Editor: Dean G. Manly
• Foley Editor: Scott Burrow
• Music Editor: Darrell Hall
• Orchestrator: Alexander Courage
• Sound Editor: Virginia Cook-McGowan
• Sound Mixer: Antonio Betancourt
• Supervising Sound Editor: Robert G. Henderson
• Digital Compositors: Don Lee
• Visual Effects: Janek Sirrs
• Visual Effects Coordinator: Robin Saxen
• Visual Effects Producer: Les Hunter
• Visual Effects Supervisor: Richard Chuang
• Visual Effects Art Director: Tom Southwell
• Costumer: Annette Andreozzi
• Second Assistant Director: Craig A. Pinckes
• Second Second Assistant Director: Lisa C. Satriano
• Second Unit Director: Craig Hosking
• Assistant Property Master: Rick Chavez
• Title Designer: Richard Greenberg
• ADR Editor: William C. Carruth
• ADR Mixer: Thomas J. O’Connell
• First Assistant Sound Editor: Brooke Henderson Ward
• Foley Artist: Eric Gotthelf
• Supervising ADR Editor: James Simcik
• Special Effects Assistant: Tony Tortolano
• Special Effects Technician: Donn Markel
• VFX Artist: Mark Tait Lewis
• Visual Effects Production Assistant: Peter Loop II
• Stunts: Joe Bucaro III
• Best Boy Grip: William E. Fitch
• Dolly Grip: Michael Brennan
• Second Assistant Camera: Keith Banks
• Negative Cutter: Mo Henry
• Project Manager: Stephen Sobisky
• Assistant Location Manager: Ann Lynch
• Music Programmer: Nick Vidar
• Assistant Chief Lighting Technician: James Wirosko
• Assistant Production Coordinator: Jennifer Corey
• Chief Lighting Technician: Shane D. Kelly
• Digital Effects Producer: Dennis Michelson
• Head of Production: Mitzi Gallagher
• Payroll Accountant: David Romano
• Pilot: Kevin Eldridge
• Production Assistant: Peter Alun Thomas
• Production Secretary: Tiffany Scuitto
• Rotoscoping Artist: Karen Klein
• Technical Advisor: Sayed Badreya
• Assistant Editor: Bobby Bell
• Production Assistant: Boston Russell
• Visual Effects Supervisor: Peter Donen
• Supervising Sound Editor: David M. Horton
• Makeup Artist: Mary Burton
• Script Supervisor: Kerry Lyn McKissick
• Sound Re-Recording Mixer: Les Fresholtz
• Sound Re-Recording Mixer: Rick Alexander
• Sound Re-Recording Mixer: David E. Campbell
• Sound Re-Recording Mixer: John T. Reitz
• Sound Re-Recording Mixer: Gregg Rudloff
• Sound Re-Recording Mixer: Grover B. Helsley
• Sound Editor: Greg Dillon
• Sound Editor: Samuel C. Crutcher
• Sound Editor: Adam Johnston
• Sound Editor: Marshall Winn
• Sound Editor: John Phillips
• Sound Editor: David B. Cohn
• Sound Editor: William L. Manger
• Casting: Zoraida Sanjurjo López
• Stunts: Henry Kingi
• Stunts: Gary McLarty
• Stunts: John C. Meier
• Stunts: John Cenatiempo
• Stunts: Peewee Piemonte
• Stunts: Chris Cenatiempo
• Stunts: Buddy Joe Hooker
• Stunts: Maryellen Aviano
• Stunts: Bobby Bass
• Stunts: Paul Borne
• Stunts: John Casino
• Stunts: Max Daniels
• Stunts: Eddy Donno
• Stunts: Kerrie Cullen
• Stunts: Kenny Endoso
• Stunts: Kiante Elam
• Stunts: Ousaun Elam
• Stunts: Billy Hank Hooker
• Stunts: Will Leong
• Stunts: Danny Lopez
• Stunts: Henry Kingi Jr.
• Stunts: Larissa Michieli
• Stunts: Alan Oliney
• Stunts: Steve Picerni
• Stunts: Jimmy Nickerson
• Stunts: Don Pulford
• Stunts: Jimmy Romano
• Stunts: Pat Romano
• Stunts: Danny Rogers
• Stunts: John Rottger
• Stunts: Ron Stein
• Stunts: Michael Runyard
• Stunts: Skip Ward
• Stunts: Scott Wilder
• Stunts: P.J. Wagner
• Stunts: David Zellitti
• Stunts: Birgit K. Schier
• Stunts: Tony Epper
• Stunts: Eric Chambers
• Second Assistant Camera: George Richmond

Movie Reviews:

• Wuchak: **_Suspense at 33,000 feet with Kurt Russell_**
• An intelligence analyst (Russell) inadvertently joins a special forces operation to save a Boeing 747-200 hijacked by terrorists before it is used to attack DC. Steven Seagal plays the mission commander, Halle Berry a flight attendant and Oliver Platt an aeronautics engineers, amongst other notables.
• “Executive Decision” (1996) is an airliner-in-trouble flick from the angle of “Under Siege” (1992) directed by the editor of “Die Hard 2” (1990). I bring up the latter because this one’s very similar except that it takes place in the air rather than an airport.
• I didn’t expect to like it because it’s basically “Die Hard” on a plane and I didn’t think a worthwhile movie could be made with such a cramped setting, but work it does. Sure, a lot of the runtime involves rescuers strategizing in the bowels of the airbus using hi-tech equipment, like hidden cameras, but the creators respect the intelligence of the viewer and there are several innovative bits along with great suspense.
• It was obviously prescient of 9/11, filmed six years prior to that infamous attack.
• The movie runs 2 hours, 13 minutes, and was shot in SoCal at Norton Air Force Base, San Bernardino, but also Chino Airport, Mojave Desert (crash scene), Sierra Madre (Chechen Mafia House). The wedding kidnapping sequence was shot in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
• GRADE: B