9. Air Force One (1997)
Harrison Ford plays quite possibly the most bad-ass President in the history of cinema opposite Gary Oldman's terrifying Ivan Korshunov in a movie so high-concept it borders on the genius; when his plane is hijacked, the Commander-In-Chief must take them down himself. A plot with the potential to descend into farce is saved by great performances, genuine suspense and well-staged action scenes. It was never going to go to plan when Ford's President James Marshall announces (in close-up, no less) that the United States does not negotiate with terrorists. Sure enough, in a suitably tense sequence at the end of the first act Korshunov's militants seize control of the plane with the help of a Secret Service double-agent and take the passengers hostage, thinking the President has abandoned ship. What follows could easily be described as 'Die Hard on a plane', but thanks to Wolfgang Petersen's direction and the performances of the two leads, that would be doing the movie a disservice. The claustrophobic setting of the plane's interior allows for some inventive action as the President attempts to rescue the hostages, and Oldman's villain stays on the right side of scenery-chewing to provide an air of real menace. Despite almost falling into cliche during scenes set on the ground in the 'situation room', and a forgettable plot device that justifies Korshunov's actions,
Air Force One is one of the most genuinely entertaining movies of the decade. Exploding fuel tankers, gunfights at 30,000ft and one of action cinema's greatest pay-off lines (you know the one) make for one hell of a thrill ride.