While reading the first batch of reviews for Plane, the latest action thriller starring Gerard Butler, there’s a word that pops up a lot: “throwback.” Despite looking like the type of film that would go straight-to-video, Plane is surprisingly racking up rave reviews as critics are here for the ’90s-style action that’s gone missing in these days of CGI superhero extravaganzas. It also doesn’t hurt that Butler has continued to be a certified action star even after his years of churning out romantic comedies. (Remember those?)
Like M3GAN, Plane is disrupting the old maxim that January is a dumping ground for films because critics are loving this tight action thriller filled that would’ve been right at home next to Air Force One or Executive Decision back in the day.
You can see what the critics are saying below:
Mike Ryan, Uproxx:
A movie like Plane is so rare and such a throwback, it comes off as a refreshing breather from what we usually get fed at theaters these days. Like its title, Plane is a tight and to-the-point movie and I had a whole lot of fun watching it. (Also, as a bonus, like most movies from that era, once the plot is wrapped up, it “just ends.”)
David Ehrlich, IndieWire:
Jean-François Richet’s “Plane” becomes the most airworthy Gerard Butler vehicle this side of “Greenland” by answering a question that Clint Eastwood didn’t even have the courage to ask: What if, instead of ditching US Airways Flight 1549 in the Hudson River like a total loser, Capt. Sully Sullenberger had been man enough to land that baby in the middle of a steroidal ’80s action movie?
Owen Gleiberman, Variety:
“Plane” is fodder, but the picture brazens through its own implausibilities, carried along — and occasionally aloft — by Gerard Butler’s squinty dynamo resolve.
Nick Schager, The Daily Beast:
Arguably the best of Hollywood’s old-school action heroes, Butler is in fine macho form in Jean-François Richet’s feature, which hits theaters Jan. 13, proving once again that few marquee leads are as comfortable, and skilled, at kicking ass in do-or-die genre efforts.
Frank Scheck, The Hollywood Reporter:
In his newest film, Plane, Butler plays an airline pilot, so you can rest assured that his flight is not going to go smoothly. Fortunately for moviegoers, the veteran Scottish actor is an engaging, charismatic presence, and Plane is the sort of breathlessly paced suspenser that barely leaves a moment for audiences to stop suspending their disbelief.
Katie Walsh, Los Angeles Times:
Jean-François Richet’s “Plane” is as efficient, economical and effective as its title, which is a good one, actually — clear, descriptive, communicates what the film is about. The characterization in the screenplay by Charles Cumming and J.P. Davis is lean to the point of scanty, but we’re given just enough to suffice, and any more would be overkill. Much like the aircraft itself for the majority of “Plane,” this taut thriller remains grounded and gritty.
Plane lands in theaters on January 13.
