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Airport '77

Airport '77

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Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Star-studded cast enlivens solid adventure
Review: "Airport '77," directed by Jerry Jameson, is a good example of the disaster flick genre. In this film some aspiring thieves attempt to hijack a luxury aircraft full of valuable works of art. But when the plot goes horribly wrong, the plane's heroic pilot (Jack Lemmon) must lead the crew and passengers in a harrowing struggle for survival.

Although some corny, soap opera-ish elements give the film a dated feel, overall it's a gripping and entertaining adventure. Lemmon makes a solid, likeable action hero, and he and Brenda Vaccaro (as his character's love interest) have an engaging onscreen chemistry. The rest of the cast is full of both big stars and recognizable character actors, among them Lee Grant, Joseph Cotten, James Stewart, George Kennedy and Robert Foxworth. Veteran film villain Christopher Lee is particularly memorable; here he is successfully cast against type in a sympathetic role.

The film strikes a solid balance between character-driven drama and hardware-driven action scenes. The cooperation of the U.S. Navy and Coast Guard (noted in the closing credits) undoubtedly contributed to the flavor of authenticity in certain key scenes. A must-see for disaster film fans.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Star-studded cast enlivens solid adventure
Review: "Airport '77," directed by Jerry Jameson, is a good example of the disaster flick genre. In this film some aspiring thieves attempt to hijack a luxury aircraft full of valuable works of art. But when the plot goes horribly wrong, the plane's heroic pilot (Jack Lemmon) must lead the crew and passengers in a harrowing struggle for survival.

Although some corny, soap opera-ish elements give the film a dated feel, overall it's a gripping and entertaining adventure. Lemmon makes a solid, likeable action hero, and he and Brenda Vaccaro (as his character's love interest) have an engaging onscreen chemistry. The rest of the cast is full of both big stars and recognizable character actors, among them Lee Grant, Joseph Cotten, James Stewart, George Kennedy and Robert Foxworth. Veteran film villain Christopher Lee is particularly memorable; here he is successfully cast against type in a sympathetic role.

The film strikes a solid balance between character-driven drama and hardware-driven action scenes. The cooperation of the U.S. Navy and Coast Guard (noted in the closing credits) undoubtedly contributed to the flavor of authenticity in certain key scenes. A must-see for disaster film fans.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Star-studded cast enlivens solid adventure
Review: "Airport '77," directed by Jerry Jameson, is a good example of the disaster flick genre. In this film some aspiring thieves attempt to hijack a luxury aircraft full of valuable works of art. But when the plot goes horribly wrong, the plane's heroic pilot (Jack Lemmon) must lead the crew and passengers in a harrowing struggle for survival.

Although some corny, soap opera-ish elements give the film a dated feel, overall it's a gripping and entertaining adventure. Lemmon makes a solid, likeable action hero, and he and Brenda Vaccaro (as his character's love interest) have an engaging onscreen chemistry. The rest of the cast is full of both big stars and recognizable character actors, among them Lee Grant, Joseph Cotten, James Stewart, George Kennedy and Robert Foxworth. Veteran film villain Christopher Lee is particularly memorable; here he is successfully cast against type in a sympathetic role.

The film strikes a solid balance between character-driven drama and hardware-driven action scenes. The cooperation of the U.S. Navy and Coast Guard (noted in the closing credits) undoubtedly contributed to the flavor of authenticity in certain key scenes. A must-see for disaster film fans.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Goodtimes Dvd = Bad Picture Quality
Review: After reading a couple of other reviews about the "quality" of transfer on this dvd, I decided I wanted this in my collection. What I THOUGHT would be good or atleast a decent enough picture quiality, I WAS VERY DISSAPOINTED.THE QUALITY OF TRANSFER OF THE PICTURE IS HORRIBLE!!! A great movie a total real diaster flick in picture quality. Non anamorphic, deffintaly not remastered or digitally transfered. Picture tones are very, very bad, along with what little color that is desplayed. Almost a black & white picture with most of the entire movie too dark to make out what is going on. Even with my brightness turn all the way up on my tv, it still was so dark it almost wasn't worth continue watching.The ONLY things positive on this dvd was the fact it was in widescreen and "suppossedly" in Dolby Digital EX. The beginning Dolby intoduction was deffinatly in Dolby and had good sound but the movie itself didn't distributeand Dolby sounds that I could make out on my theatre sound system. Sounded like mono to me.Thsi dvd reproduction stinks and I suggest those that are into quality dvd and getting you money worth saty away from this "Goodtimes Video" version untill it is put on dvd correctly. Why they botherd is beyond me. Because I wanted to have a copy of this movie in widescreen, I am taping it on to VHS for my collection and going to try and return it for something better tommorrow. I suppsoe I'll have to be content that I got the widscreen version on VHS for now untill they re-release it on dvd with better quality, or they show it on tv in widescreen which I highly doubt. Heck, even TAPING IT OFF TV YOU'D GET A BETTER PICTURE QUALITY THAN THIS DVD.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: 3rd "Airport" Entry Is 3rd Best
Review: Airport '77 features a wide array of Hollywood stars, including Jimmy Stewart, Jack Lemmon, Olivia DeHavilland, Christopher Lee, Joseph Cotten, and Lee Grant. There's probably a few too many stars to keep our eyes on in this story of a privately-owned Boeing 747 luxury jetliner that gets lost in The Bermuda Triangle and crashes into the ocean. But the action and rescue scenes somewhat make up for the weak script. There are some good visual images in the film, especially of the Jumbo Jet smashing into the sea! (Very realistic looking!) Lemmon, as always, gives a good performance, as the plane's #1 pilot. I guess they didn't have room on board for Charo. But she does show up in the 4th (and thus far last) installment of the "Airport" series -- "Airport '79-The Concorde". That last one gets "zero" stars! Good only for a healthy laugh or two!

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Airport '77 scratches the disaster itch, but not much else.
Review: Airport '77 is a fairly exciting and suspenseful disaster movie. The all star cast give professional performances in roles that require them to just fill in the screen until the special effects and action can take over. Pretty standard stuff, but the overall look of the movie is expensive and plush, the Oscar nominations were deserved.

The film itself has aged fairly well, Edith Head's costume design is far, far better in this film than it was in the eye melting Airport 1975 and it was mildly amusing to see the now obsolete Atari Pong video game and Laser Disc trotted out as the highest of tech toys on the plane. The only quibble I have with this movie is the visually inert direction by Jerry Jameson. Jameson, like Jack Smight (director of Airport 1975) and David Lowell Rich (director of The Concorde - Airport '79), was primarily a director of television movies and series episodes and it shows in the movie's overall lack of any real visual character. Nonetheless this is harmless Saturday afternoon matinee fluff that will satisfy the itch to see a star studded disaster flick, just not much else.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Airport '77 is all wet
Review: Airport '77 is the story of bazillionaire Phillip Stevens (a slumming James Stewart) who is jetting some of his friends and colleagues and others on a luxury 747 to view his art collection which is going to become a museum, because, as we learn later...he has A FEW MONTHS TO LIVE!!! Unfortunately, some hijackers unleash some gas on the passengers and plan to swipe the artwork. But the plan goes awry when the plane crashes into the Bermuda Triangle.

Quite realistic, don't you think? The problem is the movie is boring. None of the characters make an impression. Let's see, there's the feuding couple with the wife who cheated on her husband, but that's never mentioned again; the old lady renewing a friendship with an old man; some kids who like to play Pong; a blind pianist who sings about seeing through "the eye of the beholder"; a bartender whose wife is about to give birth to twins, etc., etc. What are their names? I don't know, all I know is that they're bland characterizations meant to sustain interest before the big crash scene. Jack Lemmon is the pilot, and Brenda Vacarro is Eve, his love interest. They generate no heat at all.

To make a boring movie short, I just found this film bland and uninteresting. The big rescue scene is silly, and everything leading up to it is a waste of time. George Kennedy, who appeared in every Airport movie as Patroni, has about one minute of screentime here wherein he does nothing. Most of the movie is spent with people staring vacantly out the window, or squealing in pain. Much like the viewer would do.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Jack Lemon Is The Perfect Hero!
Review: Airport 77 has the best thing ever any movie could have - Jack Lemon. He is and always will be my favorite actor of all time. He can be intriguing, enchanting, enlighten, scary and above all he has an incredible sense of timing and humor. The industry lost a genius last year when he passed away.

Now besides this movie having Jack Lemon, the movie also contains extensive talents from people like - Brenda Vaccaro, lee Grant, Joseph Cotton, Olivia De Havellin, Darren McGavin, Christopher Lee, Robert Foxworth and Gil Gerard

The story is one of the scariest you could think of if you have ever travel on a 747 or larger airplane. What it the plane was taken over by the 'bad guys'? Scary? What is the plane crashed because of their take-over? Is that even scarier? What if it crashed in the ocean? Now that's got to be real frightening!

The movie contains a lot of action and drama and some great miniature effects with the plane crashing into the water and the final lifting of the plane to the ocean surface as well. The whole search and rescue sequence is very interesting too.

The DVD doesn't contain any extras, but as far as movies go - it does have a good sense of drama - and - Jack Lemon is worth it alone!

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: High camp adventure
Review: AIRPORT 77 is a camp classic, full of great moments which leave you open-mouthed with the audacity of it all. Jack Lemmon gains points by taking it seriously, but the highlights include Lee Grant and Christopher Lee giving it a bit of "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf" and James Stewart playing, well, himself. Pretty good effects for the era, and the dialogue is something else. Great disguise scene at the start, involving changing hair colour and putting on a false moustache.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: An original disaster masterpiece of its kind.
Review: Airport 77 is one of those adventure movies that I enjoy and remember as a child. The DVD came out recently and I'm surprised I'm the first to make a review about it. Great cast and very original of its kind. The special effects (in those days) make it so awesome to believe the real life consequences of this kind of disaster.


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