A Not So Perfect Flight Plan

Eversince I learned about this film and saw its trailer, I have been excited to see it! Not only that I adore Jodie Foster, I felt that this movie has the makings of one of my favorites suspenseful movies called The Panic Room (which is also a JF starrer).

Kyle Pratt (JF) was about to bring home her dead husband's body from Berlin to New York. She was with her daughter, Julia, abroad a state-of-the-art 474 aircraft which she helped design. After flying for three hours, she woke up seeing that her daughter was missing. She looked for her everywhere in the plane but she was nowhere to be found. The flight attendants were also asked by the captain to search for Julia but it was futile. The captain and the crew suspected that Julia wasn't on board to begin with and that Kyle was experiencing a depression regarding the mysterious death of her husband. But Kyle refused to diginify their suggestions that she went through all means to prove that Julia was with her. Till she learned that there was more to her daughter's disappearance than she'd expected.

The movie may be entertaining enough for an audience who wants thrill and excitement. It managed to capture its audience attention to the conflict that they have been seeing on screen. Some even did feel what Kyle must've been going through upon losing her child. But when the movie ends, the questions begin. Unfortunately, one would managed to pull out a thousand questions yet get no answer.

The problem with the movie is that it focused itself on the whats and the whys of the conflict and how to solve it. It has forgotten to go through the how it all began issues. In the first place, why was Kyle chosen as the victim and what was the original plan of the antagonists? What happened in the film was already the result of the screwed-up plan. Should we be seeing a prequel to this film just so that we could understand it better?

Overall, this film is about one's behavior. It is about how one would react and behave in a given situation. If everything that happened in the film was part of THE plan, then I commend the antagonists for a well-made plan. However, how did he manage to know how Kyle (and the rest of the people on board) would behave in such a situation? Was he a behavioral science expert? Does he know Kyle that well?

The US has a strict policy on not negotiating with terrorists at any cost. How could the US agreed so easily on giving the demands of the terrorists? Was the higher authorities ever contacted?

Where are the camera monitors all throughout the ride? Not even the captain thought of inspecting it just to know whether or not Kyle went on the plane with her daughter!

I also understand the disgusted feelings of the flight attendants who have seen the film. They were portrayed as uncaring and unaffected when in fact, full service to all passengers is their main goal.

I know that the movie isn't Air Force One or Executive Decision. It couldn't be even compared to The Panic Room. But please don't insult our intelligence by giving us a half-baked film! Not even Jodie Foster's good performance could save the stupidity of the events that unfolded!