Con Air

Macho's in a non-stop action movie with lot's of explosions. This is ladies and gentlemen; the ultimate guy movie.

The movie is filled with crazy over the top characters such as Pinball, Johnny-23, The Marietta Mangler and Sally-can't-dance. It has some of the best casting in a movie I have ever seen. The actors are all simply perfect for their roles. Especially John Malkovich and Steve Buscemi are excellent as always and their characters are the best of the movie even though Buscemi's character wasn't really needed at all. The introduction of the prisoners at the beginning of the movie is completely over the top but I love it! It possibly is one of my favorite scene's in cinema history when we first meet Cyrus the Virus and Diamond Dog, the music really sets the mood in that scene.

Of course the story is not important, it's all about explosions, shootings, fist fights and everything in between. But dislike other action movies "Con Air" actually has a story that I like, even though it's completely over the top. Although I think that the movie might had been better of without the Poe's family scene's and storyline, even though I still sort of like the emotional scene's between them. Also I think that Nicholas Cage is a bit too much of a good guy in the movie, not only does he help his friend on board, he even finds time to try and save all the cops their lives and that of the bunny present for his daughter.

A good thing is the excellent soundtrack by Trevor Rabin and Mark Mancina that gives the movie an extra 'cool' feeling.

One little point of critic is that the editing isn't always great. But I can live with that...

Perfect entertainment in a crazy over the top non-stop action movie! There are better action movies out there but not much.

8/10

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While not as clever or amusing as _The Rock_, which this was apparently an effort to surpass, it certainly delivers the pyrotechnics. Cage, as always, delivers the best performance he can, given the confines of the script, and his best _Raising Arizona_ drawl.

The film's beginning sets a hopeful tone, we see the honorable Cage unjustly imprisoned and preparing to return to his home and the child he has never seen. Meanwhile, the penal system is filling the transport plane which will take Cage to freedom with a cast of the worst criminal psychos behind bars. There is an odd parallel to the beginning of _Stagecoach_ as the plane is loaded with the case of miscreants and a cursory description is given of each criminal. The film has a weakness for hyperbole, each character introduction, each scene, each explosion is meant to top the one before it.

Fortunately, the film does have a real ensemble cast, the full roster of villainous character actors: Malkovich, Rhames, Buscemi, Danny Trejo amongst the cons. The law is Cusack and Colm Meaney and Rachel Ticotin (Total Recall). Even Dave Chapelle is amongst the crooks.

Ultimately, the film maintains too straight a face during the ruckus. If you are going to ask the audience to accept one outrageous improbability after another, you need to keep it amusing. Chappelle keeps it funny while he's on screen but it's not long enough.

Unfortunately, the throttle has only one speed: pedal to the metal. Unlike Woo or McTiernan, who--predictable as they may arguably be--are able to build crescendos and know when to let off the gas, this one keeps on pushing harder and harder until we're feeling a bit catatonic. There is just a terrific amount of pyrotechnics and they use up twice as much powder each time. It never seems to end, which is usually a bad thing for an action movie.

But I shouldn't grouse too much. It is definitely an entertaining diversion, and Cage and Cusack are good in their roles, Colm Meaney is as always amusing. Malkovich and Buscemi are creepy enough but not the flamboyant psychos they could have been. Ironically, Cage has exactly that type of charisma (remember _Kiss of Death_, _Snake Eyes_, _Face Off_) but is forced to be restrain himself as the stolid ex-Army ranger.

Finally: what the HECK does bruckheimer have against Corvettes???

Cameron Poe (Nicolas Cage) is released from the Army Rangers and reunited with his pregnant wife (Monica Potter). He is challenged by 3 drunks outside of a bar and kills one. He is sentenced to 7 to 10 years in prison. He gets paroled and he's hitching a plane ride until his release. The plane has his friend cellmate Baby-O (Mykelti Williamson) as well as many dangerous supermax prisoners on their way to a new prison. Vince Larkin (John Cusack) is overseeing the transfer with DEA wildman Duncan Malloy (Colm Meaney) running a sting on a drug lord. Malloy sneaks a gun with his undercover agent onto the plane. Cyrus 'The Virus' Grissom (John Malkovich) masterminds an escape plan with Pinball (Dave Chappelle) stealing the keys from Guard Sally Bishop (Rachel Ticotin). Diamond Dog (Ving Rhames) is a militant black prisoner.

This is an over-the-top ridiculous cartoon action thriller. One has to leave all reasonable logic behind. There is a lot of unnecessary overacting by Meaney. With all the great action, the movie should be a lot more thrilling and intense. The jokey irreverent feel makes it less intense. After awhile, it's not about the plot or whether Baby-O gets the help. It's what other ridiculous things are they going to pull. I have to roll my eyes when Steve Buscemi arrives as Hannibal Lecter. However it is so ridiculous that it's kind of fun.

I realise that Con Air is about as far from ground-breaking visionary cinema as you can get—Hell, it was produced by Jerry Bruckheimer, which speaks volumes about the artistic integrity involved—but as a thrilling slice of slam-bang popcorn action fun, it works a treat.

Nicolas Cage plays Cameron Poe, an honourable army ranger who is sent to a maximum-security federal penitentiary after accidentally killing a man while protecting his pregnant wife (Monica Potter). After serving eight years, Cameron is finally given parole, and scheduled to fly home on a C-123 Jailbird aircraft, along with several other prisoners whose number include evil criminal mastermind Cyrus the Virus (John Malkovich) and Poe's likable diabetic cell-mate O'Dell (Mykelti Williamson). Poe's freedom is delayed however, when Cyrus and his equally vile cohorts take over the plane by force, and O'Dell's life is placed in jeopardy...

Unlike The Rock, which was an overly dramatic and rather jingoistic affair, Con Air is pure cartoonish excess from start to finish. To try and analyse the plot or apply logic to proceedings is futile, the script conveniently glossing over details as and when it suits (for example, we never learn what Cage's cell-mate O was jailed for; as a result, he becomes a sympathetic character, when the guy could have been a child killer for all we know!). Director Simon West sure isn't concerned about his film making sense, 'cos he's too busy having the time of his life inflicting maximum damage on everyone and everything in the most spectacular manner possible. In this film, the rules are 'don't just have a car crash when you can drag it behind a plane on a hook for a while before smashing it onto a runway?' and 'Don't just kill a man when you can kill him and then drop his corpse from several thousand feet onto a moving vehicle?'.

It's stuff like this, coupled with a formidable cast and excellent stunts, pyrotechnics and special effects, that elevate Con Air from the ridiculous to the sublime. I give Con Air a rating of 8 delightfully ruthless maniacs out of 10, making it the second best Nicolas Cage action flick of 1997.

You couldn't ask for much more even when it delivers much more than it should. This is one of those Action Movies that throws everything at you but the kitchen sink and then decides to do just that.

The ridiculous ending may be too much but once it starts you can't get off the speeding ride. After all, you are already on board so there's not much choice. Not only is there enough action and mayhem, the over the top characters fit right in with the over the top action.

Anyone who patronizes a Movie of this sort cannot complain because it is everything that is advertised. This is a frantic, loud, occasionally funny, Hoot. It has a number of quotable lines that would make any Comic Book fan proud.

This is quite a trashy triumph of Hollywood excess and is better than most of its type because of its outrageous audacity and unrestrained recklessness. The talent here from the Director to the Stars all contribute.

This is in a special category of Ultra-Budget escapism and it ranks in the upper echelons of mind-numbing madness with an atmosphere of testosterone and whimsy that is undeniably utter entertainment for those seeking this sort of thing.