The Horror at 37,000 Feet

Although not as good as that terrifying Twilight Zone episode starring Bill Shatner, this movie is definitely under appreciated. The plot is strange with all the Druid rituals, but the oddness of the subject matter adds to the atmosphere. It takes place on a virtually empty airplane which I myself have flown on before. With a full plane, the whole thing would have been a chaotic mess where as this sparse cast allows for a bit more calmness and thought. The characters work together to defeat this demon or ghost or whatever it's supposed to be, but they gradually fall apart as the terror gets more intense. You will recognize most of the actors and they all turn in decent performances. It's hard to pick a favorite, but Shatner's drunken defrocked priest is the most interesting. The special effects are good at times, but occasionally amateurish due to working under a TV budget as opposed to a movie one. The whole package is very entertaining though. When I realized it was coming to an end I was kind of disappointed as I wanted more. Overall, the film really impressed me and after watching this it made me want to look into many more 1970s made for television horror movies.

Disaster movie meets horror movie as supernatural events happen on a passenger plane.

This might be just a TV movie but this is more fun than Airport 1975 and Airport 79 put together!

1960s sci-fi stars William Shatner (Star Trek) and Roy Thinnes (QM's The Invaders) dealing with more out-of-this-world dangers in the early 1970s, that is what draws me to this movie.

But if you don't view the film that way, well, you might not get such a blast out of it. The horror element is very mild, in fact the first 30 or 40 minutes of the flick are more about the quirks of the passengers and crew of the plane...not much horror.

Produced by Anthony Wilson who was the story editor for all 83 episodes of Lost In Space.

I just found this long lost gem of a movie on YouTube with a surprisingly good print. I hope others enjoy it on YouTube, if it does not get taken down.

Finally this showed up on lunchtime TV yesterday. Brief - all of 72 mins, "Horror at..." is a highly entertaining twist on the airplane based suspense theme. All of the ten passengers carry an attitude problem with Buddy "Barnaby Jones" Ebsen being an arrogant millionaire. Tammy Grimes, as always, looks ravishing and plays a sinister part perfectly. Chuck Connors excels as the Captain, pre-dating his Airplane II role by some nine years. Yes it'll make you laugh but that's what makes it so good. 7/10

A familiar cast of TV veterans star in this entertaining, reasonably effective TV movie that stars Roy Thinnes("The Invaders") as an architect transporting an old Abbey altar on an airplane from London to L.A. that comes to demonic life, threatening all aboard, like William Shatner("Star Trek") as a former priest called back into action to defeat the evil, and Chuck Conners("The Rifleman") as the pilot. Buddy Ebsen("Barnaby Jones") and Russell Johnson("Gilligan's Island") costar.

Interesting coincidences here: both Shatner and Johnson starred together on an excellent episode of "Thriller" called 'The Hungry Glass', and Shatner also memorably appeared on "The Twilight Zone" as a similarly tormented man('Nightmare At 20,000 Feet') Both Shatner and Conners would later costar in spoof "Airplane II: The Sequel"

Just out on DVD, and worth a look.

I was 9 years old when I saw this CBS Network movie when it first aired in 1972 and my brother, sister, and I were wide-eyed and scared silly by it! The next day in elementary school it was the talk of the playground and lunchroom discussion was lively! Nothing could beat this until at least Killdozer showed up two years later...

Why is it that after all these years, those of us my age that know such wise things as Scooby Doo went completely downhill with the introduction of Scooby Dumb and Scrappy Doo .....CAN'T get this film out of our heads and it is agreed it is one of the most memorable pieces of TV wackiness every created! I give Horror At 37,000 Feet such a high rating because it successfully ENTERTAINS, no matter how completely schlocky it is. TV movies in the 1970s were quite edgy, you must admit.

They TRIED, whether good or bad, and yet like a lot of music, we always refer back to the 1960s and '70s for pop culture references that just won't die.

Completely serious yet unable to escape its hokey execution, it still comes across as genuinely creepy (that whole thing with the doll as a sacrifice was a jaw-dropper!), and you can't deny that any time this is broadcast on television (thanks to the TNT network lately!), you'll drop what ever you're doing and watch it no matter what time it's on. For an "obscure" TV movie to maintain pure entertainment value after 30 years is an accomplishment, and it's quite alright to LOVE this one and laugh at it.

Chuck Connors and Russell Johnson as pilots, William Shatner as the most drinkingest ex-priest I've ever seen, Buddy Ebson looking like he showed up thinking he must be in some other film, Tammy Grimes with that inexplicable evil smile of glee ("my beautiful dog..." she laments but never actually seemed to worry about it before, rather relishing the nastiness creeping up from the cargo hold). Major plus points for the scene where the stewardess tells Grimes not to say anything to the other passengers about what she just saw, and a split second later a passenger asks what happened and Grimes matter-of-factly states a pilot is dead, and walks away without missing a beat. Also, you gotta love a film that uses that "cricket" sound effect that seems borrowed from War Of The Worlds. Man, and everyone on that plane has SUCH an attitude or issue with something, those who survived the evil creeping up from the cargo area must have at least been left with an ulcer. I've never seen so many actors look like they've just been goosed when trying to look terrified.

Gosh, to think that people once freely walked around in a plane and smoked. 9/11 has truly changed our lives because when I recently saw this film again and the scene where the woman opens a kit with scissors and clippers I just looked at the TV screen as if I couldn't believe what I saw her holding. This film will truly take you back to days when things were just, well, different.

UPDATE May, 2014: It's now available as a barebones DVD, but what would be a dream come true would be a complete DVD treatment with commentary and production information -- Horror At 37,000 Feet is too outrageous to be a lost enigma of the 1970s. With an obvious cult following (as I know many are of the likes of this one, Killdozer, and The Car), it could be a collector's dream come true. How many other TV movies this bizarre can you REALLY remember as well as this one? They just don't make 'em like this anymore, and I cherish each minute I am subjected to when watching HORROR AT 37,000 FEET!!