\Flightplan"" is one of those movies that contain several singular elements that would each be enough to attract different types of moviegoers. For instance, some people may have been attracted by the promised action sequences, others by the preview's flirtation with cognitive derangement, and maybe even a fraction were drawn in because of a Jodie Foster fetish. Who knows-it's possible.
Most intriguing was the mystery aspect proposed by the preview. Many viewers may have expected to be let down by yet another delusional-protagonist film. However, ""Flightplan"" delivers a pleasantly surprising original and unpredictable ending.
Recently widowed Kyle Pratt (Jodie Foster) boards a state-of-the-art plane, whose engine she helped engineer, with anxious daughter Julia Pratt. The duo depart from Berlin and head to New York where they will move in with Kyle's parents.
A few hours after takeoff, Kyle awakens to find that Julia has vanished. She begins her search calmly, assuming Julia has found a friend to play with or something else to divert her attention. After the plane is thoroughly searched, however, Kyle becomes frantic and resorts to desperate measures that disrupt both the crew and other passengers in order to search the plane's restricted areas.
News soon arrives from the morgue, revealing that Julia had died with Kyle's recently deceased husband, who had fallen off of a building. As the rest of the passengers and crew doubt Kyle's sanity, she is taken into the custody of Air Marshall Carson (Peter Saarsgard), where she is forced to overcome his protective restraint and bring the truth to light.
Equipped with stellar performances by Foster and Saarsgard, ""Flightplan"" does an exceptional job at instilling an anxious mother's panic into the viewers, keeping them nervous and on edge for the entire film.
Although the consistent setting of the airplane begins to feel claustrophobic after a while and there is nothing remarkable about the cinematography, the dark tones correspond with Foster's dark reality, weaving a suspenseful climate and preventing any sentiments of boredom. The action sequences are limited and there's an absence of technological bragging (such as unusually large explosions and big machines that do big things that no one really understands).
As is true for most thrillers, there are several plot holes and events that you are forced to buy despite seeming highly improbable. But there is a subtle message to be conveyed-the influence of authority and oblivion of people-that excuses, but doesn't forgive, the plot holes. Any more information on that topic would give away too much.
If you go into ""Flightplan"" expecting something completely unheard of, you'll leave disappointed. This film is by no means groundbreaking or legendary, and within a year most viewers will have forgotten about it. It's one of those films that you may randomly stumble upon at Blockbuster and think, ""Oh yeah, I think that was that one with Jodie Foster, I remember it wasn't half bad.""
If nothing else, for 93 minutes it'll surely make you forge about that paper you have due next week.
