'Flight Risk' Review: Don't Get On This Turbulent Ride
Mel Gibson is back in the director’s chair for his new thriller flight risk, a deeply disappointing and mediocre film that wastes his and everyone else’s notable talent.
On paper, Flight Risk has all the makings of a mindlessly entertaining outing to the local multiplex. The film follows a U.S. Marshall (Michelle Dockery) who is tasked with delivering a criminal witness (Topher Grace) to New York by boarding an aircraft flown by a local pilot (Mark Wahlberg). Unfortunately for them, the longer they’re in the air, the more they realize someone on that flight isn’t who they appear to be. The concept is refreshingly simple, the cast is solid, and the director at the helm is one of the most underrated working today. However, the final product here is a puzzling misfire.
The cast here is trying their best to elevate the shockingly subpar material they have to work with. Dockery makes for a fine, albeit uninteresting protagonist while Grace is channeling his usual dry, sardonic charm that audiences have come to know and expect at this point. Wahlberg, however, is the only member of the cast who is seriously trying to make this film fun and there are times where he gets very, very close to making that happen. Instead of playing one of his usual stock characters, Wahlberg embraces the zaniness of the material wholeheartedly and delivers a wonderfully unhinged performance that unfortunately isn’t given enough time to breathe and marinate. With a better script and different director, the latter of which is deeply heartbreaking to admit, this could’ve been a far better, much more entertaining film.
The biggest letdown the film has to offer is Gibson’s limp, lifeless direction that does the lackluster script no favors. The film lacks any propulsive energy to remind audiences it’s a, you know, thriller. Gibson never showcases his excellent skills behind the camera, skills that have made films like Braveheart, Hacksaw Ridge and Apocalypto such visceral, compelling stories. Especially considering the film takes place mostly within a confined space aboard the aircraft, Gibson could’ve let his creative juices flow and delivered some dynamic, immersive camerawork, but instead it feels like a film that no one would ever believe he directed unless they were explicitly told. Phoned-in feels like an understatement when it comes the overall look and feel of the film.
Speaking of energy and momentum, this film simply doesn’t have any. From the jump, it feels sluggish and glacial, never building or sustaining any noticeable tension or suspense, especially leading up to the reveal pertaining to Wahlberg’s character. Even after his facade slips away, none of the action beats in the film have any punch, each “set piece” feeling wholly underwhelming and surprisingly uneventful. Every physical altercation between these characters not only feels awkward and poorly staged, but making matters worse is the truly awful dialogue these talented actors have to spew during them. The script feels as if it took all the wrong lessons from classic 90s B-movies and soaked in none of the right ones.
The film also requires an incredible suspension of disbelief in order to buy into its premise and remain engaged in the story. Grace and Dockery’s characters are clearly intelligent people who are unbelievably foolish and unobservant throughout. The decisions they make and the obvious scheming they never take note of during the course of the film makes the eyes roll far more than keeps the audience on the edge of their seats. As a result, they both become characters who are not only difficult to like, but to root for as well.
Flight Risk doesn’t work as an action film, nor does it work as an effective thriller. Wahlberg keeps the plane in the air for a while, but even his performance can’t save the film from a gnarly crash landing. The potential was there, but this is a film that moviegoers can wait patiently with ease to hit streaming services in the coming months. Simply put, don’t get on this very, very turbulent flight.