"Con Air – This 1997 action film is a blessing, if not for Cage’s hair alone."

Directed by: Simon West
One of those films that is so bad that you love it even more. Expect explosions, guns, teddy rabbit hostages and Steve Buscemi locked up like Hannibal Lecter.
3.5/5

An ensemble cast of Hollywood A-listers results in chaos, but the good kind of chaos where you can’t help but stay glued to the screen.

I finally got around to watching Con Air after being told by friends and colleagues for years about how much of a joyous spectacle it is, one of those rubbish but incredibly enjoyable films that you secretly love. This big budget, high octane thrill fest with a long haired Nic Cage at the helm is a joy for all the senses. Cage is a ripped bombshell in this film, running around saving the day in perfect slow motion with his hair swaying, what’s not to love?

One thing is for sure when Jerry Bruckheimer is involved (Bad Boys and The Rock are just a couple of his previous exploits), and that is action, explosions, and collection of kills for the ages. Con Air was also the film that birthed that well known Nic Cage meme of him smiling with his glorious hair – finally I have discovered the origin of that infamous meme. Cage also uses one of the craziest accents in film history – a cross between Foghorn Leghorn and Hank Hill – which I just couldn’t take seriously.

Con Air (which was directed by Simon West in what was his feature debut. Going on to direct Black Hawk Down and The Mechanic) kicks off straight into the action to get your blood pumping. These 90s action films were full of cheese and perfectly entertaining, the best of their genre; nonstop action crammed into just under 2 hours with no rest bite – you cannot catch a breath.

The cast is also full of heavy hitters; as ensembles go, this takes some beating: Buscemi, Malkovich, Ving Rhames, John Cusack, Colm Meany, Danny Trejo, and even Dave Chappelle. What separates Con Air from the rest is that superb cast, everyone goes above and beyond in their roles to carry the film to unexpected heights. Most importantly, they looked like they had so much fun working on it, they all know what the project is and they’re loving every minute of it. Loaded with witty, albeit cheesy dialogue, it just makes the whole thing so much sweeter, what a blast.

We begin with Former Army Ranger Cameron Poe (Nic Cage) who has returned home to see his pregnant wife Tricia (Monica Potter) at her place of work. There, she is harassed by a group of men who seem to think a heavily pregnant woman who’s with her husband would be interested in them. After being cornered by the 3 guys, Poe fights the men off whilst accidently killing one of them with a palm heel to the nose. Accident? Okay. Poe is then sentenced to 7-10 years in a maximum-security prison. 8 years later, Poe is being paroled and boards a plane back home, a plane that is also transferring some big-time players to another prison which is under the watch of Vince Larkin (John Cusack). The plane is hijacked by Cyrus “The Virus” Grissom (Malkovich) with the help of his associates Nathan “Diamond Dog” Jones (Rhames), serial rapist Johnny “Johnny 23” Baca (Trejo), among many others. Poe attempts to wrestle control of the plane so he can return home safely. Whosever idea it was to organize this plane trip needs sacking.

The carnage is now in full flow; hostages have been taken and the death count is rising. The now disguised crew makes a pit stop to drop off some prisoners, they also pick up another big time Charlie, a serial killer named Garland “The Marietta Mangler” Greene (Buscemi) who’s entrance was far more elaborate than his actual affect on the film. The plane is now heading towards its intended destination, with Poe trying his best to derail the plan whilst also going unnoticed. Larkin is in hot pursuit, as is DEA agent Duncan Malloy (Meany), both heading towards the abandoned airfield that will host the wildest battle of guns, explosions, and everything you could think of really. Poe must now manoeuvre his way through a gun fight and vengeful crime genius to get back to his family. Con Air is absolute mayhem throughout, none of the heist went to plan and the chaos at the airport followed by the mess in Vegas was so ridiculously over the time but with max entertainment value.

Con Air is so extravagant that it makes the rest of those 90s action films look incredibly tame; The Rock and Bad Boys are child’s play compared to this explosion fantasy. For years I had people telling me to watch this film, how have you not seen Con Air they said? Well, now I am part of the bewildered audience that sat through this manic film of grandeur, Cage’s hair was enough to make me a fan for life. Don’t get me wrong, this is not a great film by any means; the plot is just ridiculous, the dialogue is even worse, and apart from a tiny character arc with Buscemi, his character was basically useless. We always need more Buscemi. However, Con Air’s job was to do certain things; be outrageous, be entertaining, and to create a meme that will love long in the memory of the internet. All of which it succeeds at doing with wonderous joy.

Con Air is available to watch on Disney+.

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Con Air – This 1997 action film is a blessing, if not for Cage’s hair alone.

3.5/5
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