I only watched CON AIRÂ recently after being convinced by several friends and members of my family. I had always heard it was one of the great action movies of the 90s. This made me somewhat keen to see it, despite not being a huge fan of Nicolas Cage.
CON AIRÂ is about an ex-con about to be released (Cage). He is trapped on-board a prisoner transport plane as the rest of the prisoners take control and hold some of the guards hostage. He tries to distance himself from the trouble and figure out a way to get off the plane and back to his family.
It’s one of those films you just cannot take seriously; if you do, you’ll not enjoy one bit of it. Most of the final act is ludicrous, bizarre, and incredibly corny. John Malkovich is pretty good at playing a crazed killer; he provides most of the entertainment here. Cage currently has a reputation for being a really strange actor, you understand that when you watch this. His performance is odd, yet you still cannot help but route for him in some way.
Overall, CON AIR is entertaining as one of those films where it’s really America that’s the hero. You’re smacked in the face with this odd patriotism with scenes like Cage walking away from explosions casually with his glorious hair wafting in the wind.
It is enjoyable and often laughable. It’s a good film to watch if you like your cheesy action.
Fancy flying back to when the film was made in 1998 , then take a look at the trailer for the movie below:
