FLIGHT RISK -- Turn On Airplane Mode

Review by Adam Donato

Mel Gibson has had quite the storied career. As a director, he’s known for these big epics that are usually met with awards acclaim. Sitting back down in the director’s chair for the first time since Hacksaw Ridge in 2016, Gibson is back at it again. This time it’s for a small January action film starring his good friend, Mark Wahlberg. The older Caucasian male crowd is on the edge of their seats. Not only does it have to compete with the wake of the Christmas releases, but other January surprise hits as well. In a time where woke seems to be broke, can these two previously cancelled movie stars take flight at the box office?

Mark Wahlberg has immense range. Not in terms of the types of roles he can play, but in the quality of those performances. He’s known for The Happening just as much as he is for The Departed or Boogie Nights. In Flight Risk, Wahlberg takes one of the most ambitious swings of his career. Without seeing the trailer, one might look at the poster and think this is another Wahlberg action man movie. In actuality, Wahlberg plays a deranged hit man who sneaks his way onto a private flight to assassinate a key witness. In this performance, Wahlberg sports an exaggerated hick accent and an embarrassingly fake bald cap. Seeing as Wahlberg is the headlining name on the project, it’s surprising how little screen time he has in the movie. The only scenes Wahlberg has that aren’t in the trailers is a string of rapey taunts. These ramblings range from darkly funny to grossly uncomfortable, more often the latter. Wahlberg is an actor who usually just plays himself, so it’s really refreshing to see him take such a big swing. It’s one of those big swings where you spin around and fall on your ass, but boy are those fun to watch. One could argue that his performance is so bad that it’s brilliant, but the lack of screen time and anything to actually do is really holding him back.

The story mainly focuses on a U.S. Marshal, played by Michelle Dockery, as she escorts a corrupt accountant, played by Topher Grace, back to see trial. Dockery’s character has to grapple with her shady past, cooperate with her captured witness, fend off the deranged hit man, and solve why this operation has gone so awry. Somehow all of this is going on in this tiny plane, but it feels like nothing is happening. Dockery’s character is not compelling and Grace’s constant nervous quips become draining after a while. The bond they form is weak and their strategy to get out of this scenario is nonsensical. A ninety minute movie shouldn’t feel so long. This is a tight little bottle thriller that isn’t very thrilling. 

Flight Risk is a distractingly ugly film. With a budget of $26 million, this film leaves a lot to be desired from a visual standpoint. At the beginning of the film, Grace’s character gets scared by a moose outside his window. This moose looks less real than Wahlberg’s bald cap. Everything that happens with the plane looks fake, which only heightens how unrealistic what’s going on on screen is. The final special effects filled action sequence is completely anticlimactic and leaves the audience wanting more. 

Watching this movie will make you feel like a flight risk yourself. The desire to be anywhere else is only matched by the thought that it will be over soon. Check this one out if you want to see Wahlberg embarrass himself for fifteen minutes.  Other than that, there’s no value to be found here. The performances, story, and special effects are all abysmal. Not much worse than a boring thriller. 

Flight Risk is in theaters on January 24. 
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Rating: 1/5