Ground Control

"Ground Control" tells the story of Jack Harris, a former air-traffic controller who quit after a "situation" with a flight he was handling. Jack is pressed into service as an ATC again during a staffing crisis at the control center. Needless to say, Jack has brief "flashbacks" at work. Also needless to say, he steps in to "save the day" during an extraordinary problem at the control center. Predictable? Heavens, yes. Oddly enjoyable? Yeah, sure...keep your expectations low, though...

Having just become a fan of "24" I bought this as a cheap DVD because of Kiefer Sutherland. Although the movie isn't an all time great it is certainly worth a watch. It won't tax you mentally but it isn't bad for a quiet night in with a beer and a pizza. Rating 7/10.

If any airport in the US were this badly maintained, it would be shut down before you could say 'Thrust Reverser'. The number of thing that go wrong here and the jury-rigged way this tower is put together is almost comical.

Having said that, Keifer's acting is rock solid as always. Kelly McGillis is not so bad, and Buffy takes an unusual turn as a nerd. Not anything I would go out of my way to see, but not bad if you come across it on TV either...

Note: The steering by way of using the thrust on the engines was a real life incident. Unfortunately, the results were not quite so good.

BTW, why didn't Fonzie just bang his fist on the computers to fix them? Ayyyy!!!

'Ground Control' is probably the biggest surprise I've ever encountered since I became a movie fan years ago. It's incredibly well done, with great performances all around, and is seriously the best independent action film I've ever seen, if that could be imagined. The climax is truly riveting, aided by tight editing and strong direction. The real surprise with this movie is that almost all of it takes place in a single set, a fact that the director/editor managed to cover up. It seems that real care was poured into 'Ground Control', a rare feat these days with the countless B action flicks being pumped out each month, and it shows. It's sad that the movie didn't enjoy even a short theatrical run, as it more than deserves it, especially after the similar, and far inferior, 'Pushing Tin' making it into theaters a year later.

It's as if the producers managed to find the only actors that actually have talent and haven't yet made it big time, and casted them in this movie. Kiefer Sutherland (The Lost Boys) is great in the main role, and is given strong support from Kelly McGillis (Top Gun, Witness- and the only real high profile actor in the film), Kristy Swanson (The Chase) and Robert Sean Leonard (Dead Poets Society)

The production values are unexpectantly high, especially for a movie on a budget like this one. Very good direction, commendable editing, and a superb script. The dialog is crisp and realistic, with a few really good one-liners, something I've never seen in a low budget action movie. The musical score is original and also very good, comparable to that of many large studio productions.

Despite a few flaws already pointed out in previous postings, I absolutely loved this movie, and I highly recommend it to anyone interested in seeing a refreshing break from the norm.

9/10

i was bought this film as a gift and was not expecting much from it. After 10 minutes of the film i was hooked. The story line is a little predictable however, its done very well. Keifer Sutherland is at his best and delivers a great performance. It just goes to show that just because a film is not packed with special FX and CGI doesn't mean its not a top notch film.