Horizon Line

Horizon Line feels like a one-line plot stretched into a 90-minute film with lead characters that have negligible chemistry between them and not worth caring much for. The only interesting thing about it is that one-line thread - stuck on a plane with the pilot dead. Josh Campbell and Matthew Stuecken previously wrote 10 Cloverfield Lane, a sci-fi thriller (with undertones of horror) that I enjoyed. But the advantage there was the underlying mystery and the solid lead performances. In the case of Horizon Line, we get neither. Keith David as the pilot who dies early on is the only character that showed some semblance of being likeable. The protagonists, played by Allison Williams and Alexander Dreymon, are total whatevers, without fleshed-out stories (or even a solid verbal reason) to back them up.

This implies that the film completely relies on extracting tension due to their current situation alone (that of manoeuvring a plane to safety without a pilot). There's the fuel outage plot-point that drives most of the (outrageous) decisions and stunts in the film. The plot-point is used purely as a stress-inducing device because the characters can't have a regular conversation between them. The only few times they do, they mouth ridiculous lines like "Omg, that must have hurt so much. I can't believe I just did that!". When the performances lack panache, director Mikael Marcimain only has the technical aspects to retain viewer attention. Many of the green-screen shots embedded with CGI look a little off, especially the ones from the exterior of the plane. It's still a watchable fare; one that ought to be seen and forgotten.

Here's how to watch this movie.

You must be very, very high to watch.

At least one other very, very high person must watch with you. Both of you must have an excellent sense of humor.

Talk nonstop about the movie throughout its entirety. Especially consider, and comment on, the acting, dialogue, special effects and editing. But most of all, discuss the actual possibility of ANY OF THESE EVENTS EVER HAPPENING IN ANY SCENARIO TO ANY HUMAN BEING. EVER.

I promise you will greatly enjoy your experience.

Yes much of what happens is unbelievable, but so is most everything that happens in a Bond and Mission Impossible movie (and such), but those are generally well-liked, so I think this one deserves some love as well. The actors did an excellent job of portraying the sort of emotion that might go into the circumstance they find themselves in, and the special effects were well done. I have to wonder if Dreymon was filming this at the same time he was shooting The Last Kingdom since his look was similar. I was not familiar with the lead female actress, but thought her performance was very believable.

I was certainly never bored while watching, and there was enough suspense and action to keep the popcorn flowing. For me, this was much better than its rating on IMDB.

Does the movie have some silly parts, yes, but it entertained me for the full 1:30. Not every movie has to be an Oscar contender. Sometimes movies are just meant to be fun, silly, and take you to another place for 90 minutes. This accomplished that.

I watched because of Alexander Dreymon. This film doesn't really know if it wants to be a love story, an action thriller, or a survival movie. The title is misleading to say the least. But to pass the time, this is actually entertaining, kept me watching just to see how it goes. Trivia: the lead characters in real life ended up having a child together.