The Best and the Worst In-Flight Movies

I’ve been a movie geek since I was a kid. So how could I refuse Zac’s Colbert’s (relation to Stephen Colbert??) request to pontificate about which movies are his favorites during airline travel? I wonder if my friend Mary Kirby at the Airline Passenger Experience Association agrees?

Rob Mark, publisher

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As a movie lover who also enjoys traveling, in-flight entertainment is a regular and important feature of my life. As a result, I’ve been the consumer of some fantastic and atrocious choices of film when flying.

Best

Airplane!

This is one of the funniest and most critically successful spoof films of all time, holding a 98% rating on movie aggregate site Rotten Tomatoes. The combination of deadpan acting, witty one liners and ludicrous sight gags is over 30 years old, but survived the test of time. It’s been imitated but never matched and is surely one of the best movies to help your flight go quickly … “But don’t call me Shirley.”

Top Gun

Although the critics dismissed it for its overly familiar plot and uninteresting characters, the visual spectacle and visceral aerial combat scenes remain unbeaten. It also acted as the launching pad for its star Tom Cruise, who plays the cocky rookie fighter pilot Pete “Maverick” Mitchell. For high-testosterone, in-flight thrills this will make any plane journey fly quicker than an F-14A Tom Cat.

Worst

Air Force One

This film is far from terrible, in fact a slightly sketchy script is carried thanks to its two more than capable leads, protagonist Harrison Ford and antagonist Gary Oldman. The former plays President James Marshall who, on returning from Moscow, is kidnapped and his airplane hijacked by Kazakhstani terrorist Ivan Korshunov, played by Gary Oldman. The story that unfolds is somewhat preposterous, but entertaining enough. The problem lies with the central premise, a plane hijacking. There’s probably not a more unsuitable theme out there to watch when flying.

Snakes on a Plane

Written by fans specifically for Samuel L Jackson, this movie came with enough hype to fill a Boeing 747. But it’s not a great film, even the charismatic and ever-watchable screen presence that is Samuel L Jackson couldn’t propel it further than 68% on Rotten Tomatoes. It fails at the most crucial points. There’s no drama or suspense, the characters are dull and one dimensional. Its one redeeming feature is that it’s unintentionally hilarious. Unfortunately, the sheer thought of snakes on a plane is enough to make you paranoid and ruin what could be a relaxing flight.

Zac Colbert writes on a range of subjects, from film and fashion to aviation and private jet charters. He’s worked as both a freelance journalist and in-house copywriter since 2007.