Air Force One (film)

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Terrorist Egor Korshunov (Gary Oldman) confronts the President of the United States (Harrison Ford).

Air Force One is a 1997 suspense thriller starring Harrison Ford, Gary Oldman and Glenn Close. It was directed by Wolfgang Petersen and released on July 25, 1997. Columbia Pictures appealed to the Motion Picture Association of America's 'R' rating and edited the film for another try, aiming for a PG-13 release. The appeal failed and Columbia decided to release the film as an R anyway. The film received two Academy Award nominations for Best Film Editing and Best Sound.

Synopsis

While on a visit to Moscow, President James Marshall announces in a speech that the United States will not negotiate with terrorists, after an operation by US and Russian special forces captured the tyrannical leader of Kazakhstan, General Ivan Raddek which happened 3 weeks before the speech. With his visit to Moscow complete, the President is now on his way home to Washington, D.C. aboard Air Force One. Unbeknown to security, Soviet neo-nationalists posing as a news crew have infiltrated the plane, and one of President's Secret Service agents, Gibbs, is in league with the terrorists.

Once the plane is aloft, Gibbs kills three fellow agents before opening the on-board weapons locker. The terrorists (controlled by Egor Korshunov) frantically grab weapons and search the plane for Marshall, killing many. They then take the remaining crew (Chief of Staff Lloyd Shepard, Military Advisor Major Caldwell, National Security Advisor Jack Doherty, and Marshall's wife and daughter) hostage. The flight crew declare an emergency and prepare to land at Ramstein Air Base. The President is evacuated to an escape pod by numerous Secret Service agents, who are all gunned down. After inspecting terrorists assume he has escaped in the deployed pod, they all head to the cockpit. Marshall comes out of hiding and retreats to the baggage deck. Meanwhile, the terrorists kill the pilots and take control of the plane, which takes off again to the surprise of standby Ramstein crew.

In Washington, Vice President Kathryn Bennett arrives at the White House, assessing the situation alongside the Secretary of Defense Walter Dean and other officials. They soon learn that Marshall did not board the escape pod and could be either dead, a hostage, or hiding somewhere onboard. The terrorists call the Vice President, demand the release of General Raddek and threaten to begin executing hostages one by one every half an hour. This threat is soon realized when Security Advisor Doherty is executed after Bennett calls to report that Russian President Petrov will not release Raddek (he tells Bennett he would only do so to save the President).

Still on the baggage deck and having already killed one terrorist, Marshall finds a satellite phone. While attempting to call the White House, a second terrorist finds Marshall and detains him. The call nevertheless reaches the Situation Room. Marshall manages to covertly order an attack on Air Force One so he can subdue the terrorist. The plan works, and Marshall attempts a fuel dump to land the plane. Recognizing the presence of someone on the baggage deck (the terrorists assume him to be a Secret Service agent), Korshunov executes Press Secretary Melanie Mitchell in an effort to force Marshall's surrender. While two of the terrorists attempt to restore the fuel controls, Marshall slips by and subdues another terrorist, using his keys to free the hostages. Major Caldwell proposes a ruse whereby an aerial refueling tanker could force Air Force One to an altitude that permits parachuting from the rear of the plane. The idea is put into action and many of the hostages escape with parachutes, but the tanker explodes when the terrorists discover the evacuation at the rear of the plane, stranding Caldwell, Shepard, Gibbs, President Marshall and his family, all of whom are then captured and taken to Korshunov.

Korshunov abuses the President and then orders him to call Petrov to secure Raddek's release. In Washington, Dean persuades the Cabinet to sign a Presidential Incapacitation Document, but Bennett refuses to sign it. As Radek's release is prepared, Marshall and the hostages free themselves and kill the remaining terrorists, but Korshunov captures Grace and shoots president but Shepard covers him by himself before Korshunov flees to the parachute ramp. In a vicious fight, Marshall manages to eject Korshunov from the aircraft by deploying his parachute while a static line is wound around his neck. Marshall then calls Petrov moments before Raddek's release, and the prison guards gun down the former general as he flees. Petrov is happy to hear that Raddek is dead.

Kazakh MIG fighter jets loyal to Raddek soon reach Air Force One and inflict serious damage on its engines in retaliation. US fighters intercept and fend off the hostile aircraft, but not before they inflict heavy damage on the plane, rendering it unlandable. An air-to-air ropeline rescue is hastilly arranged, but before the evacuation can be completed, the plane begins a rapid descent with Marshall, Caldwell and Gibbs still aboard. Marshall insists on rescuing his family and the wounded Shepard before he evacuates the plane. Once it is the President's turn to leave, Gibbs drops all pretense, killing Caldwell and the paratrooper. Marshall fights with Gibbs and escapes on the ropeline, leaving a despairing Gibbs aboard the 747 as crashes into the Caspian Sea. The C-130 rescue aircraft announces that it is now Air Force One, and the film ends with the plane flying towards safety with the First Family aboard.

Cast

• Harrison Ford - President of the USA James Marshall
• Gary Oldman - IVAN Korshunov
• Glenn Close - Vice President of the USA Kathryn Bennett
• Wendy Crewson - First Lady Grace Marshall
• Liesel Matthews - First Daughter Alice Marshall
• Paul Guilfoyle - Chief of Staff Lloyd Shepard
• Xander Berkeley - Agent Gibbs
• William H. Macy - Major Caldwell
• Dean Stockwell - Secretary of Defense Walter Dean
• Tom Everett - National Security Advisor Jack Doherty
• Jürgen Prochnow - General Ivan Raddek
• Donna Bullock - Press Secretary Melanie Mitchell
• Michael Ray Miller - Colonel Axerold
• Carl Weintraub - Lieutenant Colonel Ingraham
• Alan Woolf - President of Russian Federation Petrov

Reception

Air Force One received fairly positive reviews from critics. It was a notable box office success, earning $172,650,002 (54.9%) at the U.S and $142,200,000 (45.1%) in foreign countries. It grossed a total of $315,156,409 worldwide in the box office.

Roger Ebert said the film was "rich with cliches" and Ford's strong performance almost saves it.

Score

Randy Newman was initially hired to write the film score; however, his version was considered by Peterson to be almost a parody, and Jerry Goldsmith was commissioned to write and record a more sombre and patriotic score in just twelve days (with an assist from Joel McNeely). After the harried experience, Goldsmith vowed never to again take on such a last-minute task.

External links

• Template:Imdb title
• Template:Rotten-tomatoes
• Air Force One Movie Gallery at GaryOldman.info
• Air Force One Script at Daily Script
• Ivan Korshunov character information at Villain Abode.com

Analysis

• Air Force One as Political Communication

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Air Force One (film)".