Executive Decision
Directed by Stuart Baird
- action
- adventure
- drama
- thriller
The story
Terrorists hijack a 747 inbound to Washington D.C., demanding the release of their imprisoned leader. Intelligence expert David Grant suspects another reason and he is soon the reluctant member of a special assault team that is assigned to intercept the plane and hijackers.
What it’s like
Hard-edged 1990s studio action, shot in cool fluorescent corridors, dim cabin interiors and the flat grey-blue of military hangars and night skies over the Atlantic. Much of the film is claustrophobic: tight passenger-cabin framing, sweating faces lit by harsh overhead light, and rapid cutting during the assault, with a pounding, synthetic-leaning orchestral score that drives every tense beat. The vibe is pressurised and urgent, a sustained airplane-thriller panic that rarely lets up and occasionally tips into the absurd. Pacing is brisk and escalating, built on procedure, countdowns and sudden turns of deception rather than quiet character moments. Intensity is high: frequent gunfire, several sudden deaths, bursts of brutal close-quarters violence, a hostage-execution threat and some peril in the cabin, but no gore beyond the occasional wound and no sexual content. Best for viewers who want a loud, tense popcorn thriller on a weeknight, and for anyone nostalgic for the sealed-off, high-stakes action movies of that era.
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