Common Sense Media Review
By Monique Jones
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Action film has violence, language, iffy representation.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 15+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
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Plane
What's the Story?
PLANE follows Captain Brodie Torrance (Gerard Butler) as the plane he's flying with co-pilot Dele (Yoson An) crash lands. They wind up on an island in the Philippines that's run by separatists who are led by Junmar (Evan Dane Taylor). Torrance and one of the passengers on the plane, convicted felon Louis Gaspare (Mike Colter), must work together to take on the separatists, save the passengers, and get off the island alive.
Is It Any Good?
Aside from its problematic representation elements (see below), this movie hits all the major beats you'd expect from both an action film and, specifically, a Butler-led action film. He plays a "average guy" who wants to get home to his family, finds himself in peril, and must fight his way out of it. It's formulaic, but it works. But when you factor in the film's colorism, Plane immediately becomes less fun. Unfortunately, goodness feels directly related to skin tone here. The villains -- led by Junmar, who's played by the African American/Native American/Filipino American Taylor -- are distinctly darker-skinned than the movie's other Asian characters, including co-pilot Dele and some passengers. And Blackness feels associated with violence: Even though characters like Louis and Shellback (Remi Adeleke) are among the "good guys," it's because they have useful -- and violent -- military skills. Of course, their violence is the "good" kind, in contrast to the violence of the separatists, which is used to dehumanize them (we never find out exactly why they're separatists, which could have provided some context, nuance, and humanization to their actions). Overall, Plane says nothing new and reinforces painful cliches, making it feel more like a film from the 1980s or '90s than 2023.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the quality of the diverse representations in Plane. Where does it fall short? What could it have done better? How does colorism come into play?
How do the characters demonstrate courage and teamwork? Why are those important character strengths?
Talk about the movie's violence. How did it make you feel? Was it exciting? Shocking? What did the movie show or not show to achieve this effect? Why is that important?
Do you consider a Captain Torrance a hero? Why, or why not?
Movie Details
- In theaters : January 13, 2023
- On DVD or streaming : February 2, 2023
- Cast : Gerard Butler , Mike Colter , Yoson An , Evan Duane Taylor
- Director : Jean-Francois Richet
- Inclusion Information : Black Movie Actor(s) , Asian Movie Actor(s)
- Studio : Lionsgate
- Genre : Action/Adventure
- Run time : 107 minutes
- MPAA rating :
- MPAA explanation : violence and language
- Last updated : April 7, 2023
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