AIRPORT
Aspect ratio: 2.20:1 (Todd-AO)
Sound format: 6-track magnetic stereo
During one of the worst snowstorms in recent memory, overworked airport officials must contend with a series of crises, culminating in a bomb scare on board a loaded passenger plane.
Glossy all-star extravaganza - written and directed by George Seaton from Arthur Hailey's bestselling novel, and produced by Ross Hunter - which set the template for a range of similar epics throughout the 1970's (various characters suffering a wide range of personal problems are thrown together during a catastrophic event). While entirely serviceable, the movie never really comes to the boil, perhaps because it doesn't live up to its reputation as a 'disaster' thriller (there's a small calamity at the halfway mark, and a threat of further misfortune, but nothing more). Burt Lancaster, Dean Martin and Jacqueline Bisset topline a terrific cast, which includes Oscar-winning Helen Hayes as a 'dotty' old lady who cons her way onto the wrong flight, and Van Heflin as a desperate man whose final act of sabotage prompts much of the ensuing drama. Tech credits are ultra-professional, but despite Ernest Laszlo's expansive cinematography (in 70mm, no less!), the film has the look and feel of a widescreen TV movie, typical of many Universal productions from this era. Followed by AIRPORT 1975 (1974) - much trashier, and therefore much more satisfying - and thoroughly spoofed by AIRPLANE! (1980).
Aspect ratio: 2.20:1 (Todd-AO)
Sound format: 6-track magnetic stereo
During one of the worst snowstorms in recent memory, overworked airport officials must contend with a series of crises, culminating in a bomb scare on board a loaded passenger plane.
Glossy all-star extravaganza - written and directed by George Seaton from Arthur Hailey's bestselling novel, and produced by Ross Hunter - which set the template for a range of similar epics throughout the 1970's (various characters suffering a wide range of personal problems are thrown together during a catastrophic event). While entirely serviceable, the movie never really comes to the boil, perhaps because it doesn't live up to its reputation as a 'disaster' thriller (there's a small calamity at the halfway mark, and a threat of further misfortune, but nothing more). Burt Lancaster, Dean Martin and Jacqueline Bisset topline a terrific cast, which includes Oscar-winning Helen Hayes as a 'dotty' old lady who cons her way onto the wrong flight, and Van Heflin as a desperate man whose final act of sabotage prompts much of the ensuing drama. Tech credits are ultra-professional, but despite Ernest Laszlo's expansive cinematography (in 70mm, no less!), the film has the look and feel of a widescreen TV movie, typical of many Universal productions from this era. Followed by AIRPORT 1975 (1974) - much trashier, and therefore much more satisfying - and thoroughly spoofed by AIRPLANE! (1980).