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Parents' Guide to

Horizon Line

By Jeffrey M. Anderson, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 13+

Uninspired airborne thriller has language, racy moments.

Movie PG-13 2021 92 minutes
Horizon Line Poster Image

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What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

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What's the Story?

In HORIZON LINE, loving couple Jackson (Alexander Dreymon) and Sara (Allison Williams) are living on the beautiful island nation of Mauritius. They reluctantly break up when Sara leaves for a good job in London and Jackson wants to stay. A year later, Sara returns for a friend's wedding. She and Jackson run into each other before the festivities and share an unexpected night together. They next day, they end up on the same single-engine plane, heading to the wedding. When pilot Freddy (Keith David) dies of a heart attack over the ocean, the couple must set aside their differences to find land and get down safely. But they're losing fuel, fast.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say: Not yet rated
Kids say: Not yet rated

It has a decent premise and is compact and nicely paced, but this trapped-in-a-plane thriller eventually nose-dives due to uninteresting characters, lack of suspense, and too much preposterousness. This kind of thriller can work great if it finds the right balance between seriousness and silliness -- and if it introduces characters who are worth caring about. Unfortunately, Horizon Line doesn't really do either. We first meet Jackson and Sara sharing a last drink, with Sara explaining that she hates goodbyes. So, to avoid one, she simply gets up and walks out while Jackson is busy.

That's pretty slim character development, and, other than their jobs, we don't really learn much more about the two leads. Then, during the suspense part -- which this 92-minute movie takes a surprising amount of time to get to -- things just never seem as intense or as scary as they could have been. Two sequences in particular -- in which Jackson climbs out to duct-tape a leak in the fuel line and when Sara climbs out to do something even more dangerous -- feel completely ridiculous. The filmmakers didn't seem to realize how silly these moments are or how much fun they could have been if this silliness had been acknowledged. In the end, Horizon Line just sputters out.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about Horizon Line's violence and peril. How did it make you feel? Is the movie thrilling or shocking? What's the difference?

  • How is sex depicted? What values are imparted?

  • How is substance use depicted? Are drinking and smoking glamorized? Are there consequences? Why does that matter?

  • Do you think the movie is an example of cultural appropriation, given that it's about wo White people on an island near Africa? Why, or why not?

  • Is Sara a positive role model? What are her strengths and flaws?

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