Momento crítico

This is a great 90s action movie. It has the exciting moments, the interesting plot and the mixture of characters that the period's action movies all tried to have. But at the same time, it downplays the one-man heroism that is often a big part of them (looking at you, McClaine!). The movie refers to this with the character played by Segal.

The most important part of this movie is the team. Early on people tries to break with the team, but mostly everyone is on the same page throughout the movie. At the end of the movie, one character kind-of goes against his team, but the focus is also on trusting one's teammates, something that the other guys does during this moment.

If you want a quintessential 90s action flick, this is a good pick!

I am curious to know how many Steven Seagal fans walked out of the theater after the first twenty minutes demanding their money back. It is a good thing that Exectutive Decision does not direct its attention towards Seagal. Instead it chooses to focus on suspense and thrills which is exactly what it offers. It is slow and ominous, even claustrophobic at times. The plot stays consistent, never getting too thick, and it keeps you focused, Which is good enough for me.

It will be hard to watch Executive Decision today and not think about 9/11. Islamic terrorists from Algeria highjack a 747 flying from Athens to D.C. they have loaded a nuclear weapon on board, and they are giving the US government until landing time to free one of the leading Islamic terrorist they have in custody, or they blow Washington. A small team of soldiers are sent out in a small aircraft, which will latch on to the jet and allow them to board in secret. With them is intelligence consultant David Grant, who knows that there is a bomb on board and what it is capable of. confined to the labyrinth of tiny corridors and storage cabins, our heroes have only a few hours, to find the bomb, defuse it and take out the terrorists, without being seen.

This is the directorial debut for Oscar nominated editor Stuart Baird, and he does a sensational job of crafting tension. It is not until the climactic twenty minutes where Executive Decision lets out all its energy. Baird really takes his time, and just occasionally it feels like the story could use a little tightening, but not too much.

The movie is not meant to be mind enriching, but in a way it does make you realize, how much we took freedom and safety for granted, before 9/11 occurred. If that disturbs you, than perhaps you should not see this movie. Anyone else who wants to be thrilled and on the edge of their seat should watch this one for sure

I enjoyed this one. Sure there were some implausible things: the speed of the counter-action, the strange fact that a complete change of the aerodynamics of a stealth bomber seems to cause zero disturbance... But all in all it was well within bearable limits. Don't expect to see a 100% realistic plot in a movie that is supposed to contain heros! In reality, they usually get shot or explode before they have the chance to become one :-)

Critical Decisions has a more than adequate mix of suspense, better-than-horrible acting, plot twists and mild humor to relieve the tension. Whereas a lot of movies in the same genre totally screw up one or more of those aspects. I'm thinking about the terribly balanced "humor" in The Rock, for example. Killing all tension and involvement..

8/10

JoH

Slam-bang thriller is an intense, pulse-pounding thrill ride from beginning to end. Russell stars as a smart but inexperienced intelligence analyst who's given the task of a lifetime when he, along with a group of rugged Special Forces commandos, must board an American 747 in midair after it's hijacked by ruthless international terrorists. It's a race against time as they must not only ensure the safety of all the passengers, but retake the plane before it can reach the U.S. eastern seaboard. Swift direction, exciting, skillful action sequences, endless suspense, and rock solid performances make this wild ride of a movie a definite must for action fans. ***

A fun, tense, and exciting action/thriller with an excellent ensemble cast, headed by Kurt Russell and including Halle Berry, David Suchet, and John Leguizamo.

Even Steven Seagal does a creditable job, mainly because this isn't a "Steven Seagal movie." His supporting role permits him to do what he does best (which isn't acting). He doesn't have to pretend to be witty, there's none of that awful smirking he does in a vain attempt to show emotion, the camera doesn't caress his body, and there's not one speech about how gol-dang *good* his character is. He even manages to enunciate his lines clearly!

The plot might have seemed a little far-fetched when the movie was released, but not anymore.

I'm not even much of an action film fan, but this one is really a lot of fun.