Doomsday Flight (1966)
DIRECTOR: William Graham (Honky, Cry for Me Billy, Guyana Tragedy)
STARS: Jack Lord (Name of the Game is Kill), Edmond O'Brien (D.O.A.), Katherine Crawford, John Saxon (Cannibals in the Streets, Blood Salvage), Van Johnson, Michael Sarrazin (Gumball Rally), Ed Asner, Greg Morris, Richard Carlson
SYNOPSIS: A disturbed man (Edmond O'Brien) calls in a terrorist threat to an airline. He explains that he placed a bomb on a plane that just took off which will be triggered once it reaches a certain altitude. After that, if the plane drops too low the bomb will detonate. Pissed off captain Van Johnson and his crew try to find the bomb before it's too late. The passengers include a war vet (Michael Sarrazin), a narcissistic celebrity (a sleazy John Saxon) and cool headed flight attendant (Katherine Crawford). On the ground FBI man Jack Lord and Ed Asner try to find the bomber and arrest him. This made-for-TV film moves quickly, has some genuine tension, and is surprisingly not campy. Edmond O'Brien steals the show with his Coke bottle glasses, sweaty forehead and gleeful delivery of crazed dialogue. You might think that some of the plot points and characters are cliche but keep in mind that Doomsday Flight was made a good 4 years before Airport kicked off the 1970's disaster film craze. The script was written by Rod Serling and you can feel his influence especially during some of O'Brien's long rants. He even manages to use his greatest storytelling skill (ala Twilight Zone) and provides a surprising conclusion to the plot. Lalo Schifrin (Mission: Impossible, Starsky & Hutch, Bullitt, etc.) provides the score. Recommended.
Fullscreen / Color
Region Free / Code Free DVD-R
DIRECTOR: William Graham (Honky, Cry for Me Billy, Guyana Tragedy)
STARS: Jack Lord (Name of the Game is Kill), Edmond O'Brien (D.O.A.), Katherine Crawford, John Saxon (Cannibals in the Streets, Blood Salvage), Van Johnson, Michael Sarrazin (Gumball Rally), Ed Asner, Greg Morris, Richard Carlson
SYNOPSIS: A disturbed man (Edmond O'Brien) calls in a terrorist threat to an airline. He explains that he placed a bomb on a plane that just took off which will be triggered once it reaches a certain altitude. After that, if the plane drops too low the bomb will detonate. Pissed off captain Van Johnson and his crew try to find the bomb before it's too late. The passengers include a war vet (Michael Sarrazin), a narcissistic celebrity (a sleazy John Saxon) and cool headed flight attendant (Katherine Crawford). On the ground FBI man Jack Lord and Ed Asner try to find the bomber and arrest him. This made-for-TV film moves quickly, has some genuine tension, and is surprisingly not campy. Edmond O'Brien steals the show with his Coke bottle glasses, sweaty forehead and gleeful delivery of crazed dialogue. You might think that some of the plot points and characters are cliche but keep in mind that Doomsday Flight was made a good 4 years before Airport kicked off the 1970's disaster film craze. The script was written by Rod Serling and you can feel his influence especially during some of O'Brien's long rants. He even manages to use his greatest storytelling skill (ala Twilight Zone) and provides a surprising conclusion to the plot. Lalo Schifrin (Mission: Impossible, Starsky & Hutch, Bullitt, etc.) provides the score. Recommended.
Fullscreen / Color
Region Free / Code Free DVD-R
DIRECTOR: William Graham (Honky, Cry for Me Billy, Guyana Tragedy)
STARS: Jack Lord (Name of the Game is Kill), Edmond O'Brien (D.O.A.), Katherine Crawford, John Saxon (Cannibals in the Streets, Blood Salvage), Van Johnson, Michael Sarrazin (Gumball Rally), Ed Asner, Greg Morris, Richard Carlson
SYNOPSIS: A disturbed man (Edmond O'Brien) calls in a terrorist threat to an airline. He explains that he placed a bomb on a plane that just took off which will be triggered once it reaches a certain altitude. After that, if the plane drops too low the bomb will detonate. Pissed off captain Van Johnson and his crew try to find the bomb before it's too late. The passengers include a war vet (Michael Sarrazin), a narcissistic celebrity (a sleazy John Saxon) and cool headed flight attendant (Katherine Crawford). On the ground FBI man Jack Lord and Ed Asner try to find the bomber and arrest him. This made-for-TV film moves quickly, has some genuine tension, and is surprisingly not campy. Edmond O'Brien steals the show with his Coke bottle glasses, sweaty forehead and gleeful delivery of crazed dialogue. You might think that some of the plot points and characters are cliche but keep in mind that Doomsday Flight was made a good 4 years before Airport kicked off the 1970's disaster film craze. The script was written by Rod Serling and you can feel his influence especially during some of O'Brien's long rants. He even manages to use his greatest storytelling skill (ala Twilight Zone) and provides a surprising conclusion to the plot. Lalo Schifrin (Mission: Impossible, Starsky & Hutch, Bullitt, etc.) provides the score. Recommended.
Fullscreen / Color
Region Free / Code Free DVD-R