Con Air is not a clever film: it clings to a concept that feels like it was thought up by two coked up Hollywood executives over lunch. "I'm thinking of a prison movie, but instead of, like, a prison, I'm thinking... a plane. An airplane." Think of it as you will. Con Air is one of the definitive action movies of the '90s, but given that most of the story takes place on a makeshift penitentiary that happens to be in the sky, it also doubles as a prison flick. The story is ridiculous, but can pretty much be whittled down to "convict Nicolas Cage must defeat an insane John Malkovich on a plane and get back to his family." If that isn't enough to sell you the idea of a movie, what is? Con Air is unashamedly trashy, to the point where you feel a bit dirty having seen it. And yet there's no denying that it is endlessly watchable; an explosive B-movie with a budget that was probably way too high which manages to thrill at every turn. And who can forget Steve Buscemi's creepy paedophile? A man who the film somehow tricks you into liking.
Sam Hill is an ardent cinephile and has been writing about film professionally since 2008. He harbours a particular fondness for western and sci-fi movies.
