REVIEW: 7500 is an Intense Ride from Start to Finish

Amazon Studios’ new release, 7500 provides a fresh look at the hijacked plane trope. In the movie, co-pilot Tobias (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) is tasked with flying a group of passengers from Berlin to Paris. When the plane is at cruising altitude, hijackers attempt to take the cockpit. When the plan doesn’t work as expected, they begin taking their anger out on the passengers. Tobias has to find a way to safely land the plane and try to keep the passengers alive.

7500 is a gripping, intense film that will have you glued to your seat from start to finish. Director Patrick Vollrath, finds a way to make his small scale film feel much bigger. By using only one set and a handful of actors to tell his story, Vollrath keeps the focus on the happenings in the cockpit. Initially, this seems like a risk as many films of this nature highlight more of the goings on with the passengers rather than the pilots in the cockpit. At first glance one wonders if there would be enough for a story with the attention on one area and such few characters? Or perhaps it would become tiresome after a while having one main focus. Vollrath’s decision pays off in the end. This decision capitalizes on Tobias (Gordon-Levitt) and hijacker, Vedat’s emotions during the hijacking, expertly brought to life by the actors.

Gordon-Levitt carries this film as Tobias. His character goes through a variety of different emotions in a small amount of time and he easily navigated each one. Sometimes when a film focuses mainly on one actor the entire time, audience goers can lose interest. Gordon-Levitt makes sure that is not the case with his performance. He and Omid Memar portray complete opposites as Tobias and Vedat, which allowed both actors to tap into each scene in different and effective ways. You never know what is going to happen between the two as they battle it out in the cockpit; no matter the outcome it turns out to be an engrossing and captivating flick. My only wish is more backstory on Memar’s Vedat, how he ended up on the plane and decided to help take it over. More could have been done when it came to his character and his motives behind the hijacking.

For those looking for an intense ride this weekend, check out 7500. It is the most gripping film I have seen so far this year and will have you hooked until the very end.

Grade: B