O Voo da Morte

This is a good movie for made-for-TV. A true story about Canada World Airways' Boeing 767 that runs out of fuel, due to a miscalculation by the ground staff in Montreal. The Captain Bob Pearson (William Devane) and First Officer Maurice Quintal (Scott Hylands) must think of something fast before the plane and its 60 passengers fall from the sky.

The acting is great, as each main character's live stories are depicted in the movie, as his/her own personal issues are worsened by the plane's untimely misfortune. The movie is fast pace, leaving little room for mundane scenes and plot lines that drag. We see a movie where people turn from despair to hope as they struggle to find their will to help each other to survive as their plane comes falling. Again, a great TV movie that is worth your time watching.

Grade A

This was a very watchable film with lots of authentic cockpit time. I've spent lots of hours in jet cockpits and this was more realistic than most. Some criticisms : 1) The Captain (William Devane) and his first officer seemed a little weak on aircraft systems. Sure, this was a new Boeing 767, but most crewmembers I knew had a deep knowledge of every system on the plane, including fuel. There is no flight engineer... the pilots have to know it! 2)This LARGE abandoned airfield just outside Winnipeg was not on ANY chart and NO ONE knew where it was?? I found this hard to believe. 3)The ending didn't cover anything about culpability in this incident. What happened to the numbskulls who mis-fueled the plane in the first scenes? Were they fired or sued? None of them had a clue! And isn't it the Captain's responsibility for taking off with sufficient fuel? I felt they glossed over all the "legal" stuff. Devane was convincing... lots of great one-liners. Great flick.

I decided to watch this movie because William Devane was in the cast. I have enjoyed every movie he has been in. I liked the way, as captain, that he kept control, his determination to survive and a sense of humor throughout the ordeal. I laughed when Rick (Winston Rekert) says to him (Captain Bob-William Devane) that they don't want to cause the oxygen masks to pop out because it might panic the passengers. Captain Bob replies, "MIGHT panic?? I'd be surprised if they're not back there knitting their own parachutes right now!"

I saw a dramatised 1 hour documentary of this accident on the Canadian Air Crash Invetsigations series "Mayday". The dramatised bits and interviews with passengers did a much better job of entertaining than this movie does, with the added bonus of conveying what really happened.

Instead of focusing on facts this film opts to go for 1970s disaster movie approach with casting, acting, set design, music and the invitable padding out with irrelevant sub-plots. The only thing that is missing is here Charton Heston but I guess he was too old by 1995 to pass as an airline Captain! Much of the dialogue between the crew in this movie is invented and they simply don't cut it as professional airmen. There is too much sighing and emotion, and too little professionalism. Most of the time they don't look like they are sitting a real cockpit, but a large wooden room in a studio.

Many of the events are exaggerated for sensational effect, and some events invented. This would be alright but it's poorly done and it just cheapens the movie. As do the invented dramatisations with passengers and crew.

I supposed it's a watchable film in is own right...I mean, I did watch it!

I happened along this movie quite by accident. William Devane does an excellent job portraying an airline captain in charge of a doomed flight. The film was exhausting to watch. I felt like I was there in the cockpit helping Mr. Devane myself. I have tried for years to find a copy of this tape. Not until late last year was it available on VHS in the UK. I ordered the tape immediately. When the tape arrived, I was devastated to find out the VHS tapes sold in England and many other European countries are made on a different standard than ours here in the USA. I have the film on VHS in PAL standard but need it in NTSC or SECAM standard, whichever works in the US. I have been unable to get any help on this. I would very much like a copy of this film if anyone has any ideas.