Con Air

I love this movie! Nicolas cage is an awesome actor and even though this movie by itself is probably my favorite of all time, i can probably say nic made it so much better! i also make occasional references to this movie in my every day life. i really do love this movie though!

Quite simply one of the most wonderful films ever made. Imagine a blend of The Room with Die Hard and you have one of the most entertainingly hilarious films ever made. Add a bottle of wine and you won't stop laughing

Simply one of the most wonderful films ever made. Imagine a blend of The Room with Die Hard and you have one of the most entertainingly hilarious films ever made. Add a bottle of wine and you won't stop laughing. Every actor plays their part with panache and the CGI rivals anything Michael Bay can offer. And with Skynyrd's Sweet Home Alabama as a soundtrack.

One of my favourite guilty pleasure films. The story starts out believable but as the film progresses it gets more silly, but because the film doesn't take itself too seriously you can forgive that. The acting is good

Another amazing action film starring Nicolas Cage as a prisoner hitching a ride home as he's just been released, until all hell breaks loose on the plane. The action and thrills just keep coming, one of my fave Nicolas Cage films. Defo watch this if you get a chance.

I really liked Con Air. It's a real good action movie. Nicolas Cage delivers well throughout, keeping you thoroughly entertained.

The bad guys are really well played as well, each with their own distinguished personalities. Action is fast paced right from the beginning to the end, and generally the story was pretty well written.

Action scenes were well filmed, with the usual amount of high explosions and weaponry on display. The film ends on a great good guy vs. bad guy climax, and I was left pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed this movie.

If you're after a great action movie, a full cast of nasty characters, and a one guy crusade to make things good, then this movie is for you.

~ Put the bunny back in the box! ~

The other day I came across one of my all time favourite films for only a fiver on DVD. This film is Con Air. This has been one of my favourites since it was released and I did have the film on VHS but lost it. So whilst out browsing I found it on DVD. The first time I had watched the film I remember the brilliant cast and fast action. As I have properly mentioned before in another review, I am a huge fan of Nicholas Cage so this helped me want to see the film several years ago. I also liked the fact that it included some other well known actors including John Malkovich and John Cusack. Both of these actors are brilliant and I was intrigued to see what they could all bring to the film. I have seen the film about ten times but never have I got bored of it. I remember the front cover of the VHS when we rented it for the first time. It used dark colours and fire surrounding the three faces of Nicholas Cage, John Cusack and John Malkovich.

A few reasons why it is one of my favourite films are- The cast is just full of talented actors who work very well together and make some really good character. Also the action just does not stop in this film. There are car chases, fighting, shootings and killings. There are characters you can get to connect with and others just find hilarious. I did not know the director or recognise the name so this does not influence my decision on the film. Con Air is a fine action film with plenty to keep you interested and many comical parts to keep you laughing.

INFO

Director- Simon West

I didn't recognise this director's name so didn't really know much about other films he had done. When I researched him it shows that he has mainly worked in television but has done a few known films. Some of these include- 'The General's Daughter' 1999 and 'Tomb Raider' 2001.

This shows he has done a few great films and Tomb Raider made a lot of money at the box office. He has a good reputation for action films.

Writers- Scott Rosenberg

Release 6 June 1997 (UK)

Runtime- 115 Mins

Certificate- 18

Distributed

Pictures of Con Air (DVD)

Con Air (DVD)- Buena Vista International

PLOT

Cameron Poe is always in the wrong place at the wrong time. After being convicted for 8 years whilst getting into a drunken brawl and accidentally killing a man, he has missed out on his wife giving birth to his daughter. He keeps his head down whilst inside and release day comes around.

He is put on a flight home which is also transporting some very dangerous and high criminals. Poe is put in a difficult situation which means he may not get home when he expected.

CAST

Nicholas Cage- Cameron Poe

Cameron Poe was an army ranger and has respect for him and women. He is a loving husband and a very family orientated man. He will do anything to protect his life and his family. His character has to change during the film as we see that he is determined and brave. He has very high values of friendship and will help his friends no matter what. I really liked Cameron. You connect with him very well as he is the protagonist. You find yourself feeling what he is and following these events hoping he will be ok.

Nicholas Cage is an amazing actor and I love his films. He plays his role in this well and was a good choice for the film. Nicholas has also starred in many huge block busters and is very well known. Several other films of his include- 'National Treasure' 2004 and 'Next' 2007.

John Cusack - US Marshall Vince Larkin

Marshall Larkin is in charge of transporting prisoners on the 'Jailbird' to their new prisons. He seems well prepared but anxious that so many high profiled convicts are on the same flight. The other members of the team do not seem to trust his judgement very well and ends up doing everything himself. He is also a very likable character.

John Cusack, although not a huge star is respected and has done many successful films. I think he is a pretty good actor and he fits this role very well.

Films he has appeared in include- 'Martian Child' 2007 and 'Americas Sweethearts' 2001.

John Malkovich - Cyrus Grissom aka 'Cryus the Virus'.

Cryus is the most dangerous and lethal convict abroad. He has done it all, kidnapping, murder, robbery and many others and has a life sentence. He is a very intelligent man and is in charge when things take a turn for the worse for Poe. He is sarcastic, nasty and a well respected man within the plane. I really liked this character even though you are not supposing to, he is really funny and some of the comments he makes just gives the film a brilliant comical element.

John Malkovich is a well respected actor and is very successful. He has done all sorts of characters and films and I am always intrigued to see his next role. He has been acting since the early 1980's and has got into producing as well as directing two films.

Many of you may recognise him from- 'Burn after reading' 2008 and 'Being John Malkovich' 1999.

Other characters - more huge actors included

Ving Rhames - Nathan Jones aka 'Diamond Dog'Nick Chinlund- William Bedford aka 'Billy Bedlam'

Steve Buscemi- Garland Greene

Colm Meaney - DEA Agent Duncan Malloy

Rachel Ticotin - Guard Sally Bishop

Danny Trejo - Johnny Baca aka 'Johnny 23'

OPINIONS

~ Filming and Locations ~

The filming of the movie was of good standard and the film had a good pace to it. There were many different locations to keep it which is essential with films like this that are based in one area. Having the film on a plane may make it boring with the limited areas but the film provided good coverage of what was going on with the police too. The cuts were quick to fit with the action and there were great close up's of the emotions of the prisoners. The violence was also highlighted with slow filming and close up shots. The action started straight away which captures your attention.

There were some affects included in the film such as visions from the helicopters aiming panels which was a change from normal filming. I also liked some of the establishing shots over the desert and mountain areas; there were some very beautiful scenes.

Themes and Plot

The storyline was simple but really effective. There was the main story but several other sub plots as well. The sub plots are shown well and do not over complicate the film which makes it easy to understand what is happening. The film had many themes shown which I think were quite important as morals to the audience.

- Friendship. The film portrays friendship as being very important and that you should never leave one behind. Cameron shows that he would fight and even sacrifice his own life for a friend.

- Criminals. There are many differences between the convicts and you can see that Cameron is not supposed to be mixed with these people. He is not nasty and the behaviour shown by the others is extreme. The film suggested to me how people can get locked up for being at the wrong place at the wrong time and protecting their family.

- Beliefs. There were many different beliefs and rights amongst the group. One vital one which stood out was the respect for women. Cameron adores his wife and shows a high respect for any women. Johnny 23 is a rapist and this collides when he tries to attack the female guard. Johnny has no respect for women and treats them like meat whereas Cameron values them. After saving the guard from Johnny he beats the crap out of him saying' don't treat women like that!'

The film has everything you need to keep you interested and involved. There are many genres included such as comedy, romance and action which give the film a wide target audience

~ Acting and Comedy ~

All of the acting was done to a high standard and I thought that all for the actors fitted their roles extremely well. There was brilliant comedy especially with Cyrus the virus. Nichols cage does an amazing performance as usual each character has their own stand within the story. There are good stereotypes with a cross dresser and the usual bad ass character of Cyrus. Overall I thought the acting was very well done and Nicholas has done yet another successful role. I think the right cast was picked for these parts and the two leading characters worked well together.

Many other characters did a brilliant performance including Steve Buscemi as Garland Greene. This character who is suppose to be a mass murderer killing over 20 people in Europe, is calm, collective and mysterious. He provides some really good dialogue and balances the crazy action out with the calmness of his actions. He is a very intelligent man and mainly sits talking about theories and his killings. You listen to him and think that even the sick things he is saying makes sense.

Extra

The film is an 18 which I think is a good rating for it. The movie is pretty gory with many killings done in harsh ways. There is also a lot of swearing and scenes of violent sexual crimes. There are also many suggestive crimes which could upset those younger than 18.

Quotes

Cyrus- Make a move and the bunny gets it

Vince Larkin: Where are you going with my plane, Cyrus?

Cyrus Grissom: We're going to Disney Land.

Vince Larkin: You're lying, Cyrus.

Cyrus Grissom: So are you, Vince.

Cyrus- Have a pleasant flight and welcome to Con Air.

~ Overall ~

A brilliant action movie with an excellent cast, great characters and amazing scenery. I would defiantly recommend it to anyone and it will remain one of my favourite films. It is worth a watch.

DVD

You can buy the DVD from play.com at £5.99 which is an extended version. The film has no special features.

Thanks for reading - Blackmagicstar4

Probably the worst Nicolas Cage movie I've seen.

The plot in Con Air is stupid, and the characters are unbelievable.

When I first saw Con Air I was amazed how great it was. It's good if you like a mix of action and suspence in the one movie. I like the idea of the con's pretending to be guards at Carson City(for those who have seen it) and that there is not just one main bad guy in it. This is also one of my favourite films of all time along with The Ring.