Review of Non-Stop (2014) by Quincytheodore — 06 Mar 2014

With Liam Neeson soaring high as a legitimate action hero and gradually intense plot, Non-Stop could have been great, but the asinine final act undermines its thrilling build up. The movie boasts many talented cast, its cinematography dances around in such tight space, and it produces a sense of inescapable situation well. For most part, the story holds together, weaving seemingly impossible feats of crime above the sky, only to falls later with far-fetch conclusion, perhaps inspired by older Samuel L. Jackson's movie of the same premise.

Concept of being trapped and threatened mid-flight is used in an intriguing fashion. Tension escalates nicely and in familiar small inescapable space, the struggle will be relatable to the audience. Characters are introduced swiftly with skillful editing, its cast does good job on keeping the exhilaration going. At most times, the movie ventures into psychological thriller realm, connecting riddle after riddle. In contrast of more action heavy movies Liam Neeson has done in recent years or what the poster may suggest, the action takes a backseat in exchange of more intellectual coping of the characters in the predicament.

Liam Neeson as Bill Marks, moves and acts with necessary vigor, he's a good action hero with reliance on mental fortitude instead of muscle strength alone. Julianne Moore does well as Jen Summers, an unlucky passenger who's caught up in Bill's unyielding search of the culprit. She looks very natural, quite a charming innocent bystander, yet peculiarly frantic enough at some times to arouse suspicion. The rest is decent, including rising star Lupita Nyong'o, they ensure a colorful personalities among the characters as they portray quite believable reactions, up to a point.

The director gives good perspective in confined rooms. Camera angle shows restriction, but still enough for the scenes to be enjoyable without feeling too clustered. At more ardent sequences the camera even makes continuous shot of the event, which is pretty impressive considering things can get hectic. Little details, such as floating HUD of cellphones or display of the surveillance cameras provide easy viewing for the audience, without having a protagonist narrates everything clumsily.

Its main problem is its ending. As the movie progresses with elaborate schemes, you'd be most likely invested in the story, thus hoping for a clever fascinating conclusion. Sadly, it is not so. The movies somewhat loses fuel in the end, even resorting to absurd plot twist as fume. This is a very hackneyed solution, one which decreases the excitement from the build up significantly. Non-Stop could have been a great movie, if not for its rather disappointing end.