From the moment I stepped foot at the ticket window my expectations were low. When asked what the capacity was for the prime time Non-Stop film, the ticket lady responded, “It’s only at forty percent.” Oh, I thought, so much for running late to the theatre. It was two minutes to show time on opening night, and there were plenty of seats to choose from.
Non-Stop stars Liam Neeson, who plays Bill Marks, a United States Air Marshal. He is hardly recovering from his alcoholism, and his family troubles are as obvious as his chain smoking. It doesn’t quite take a genius to figure out he is not the most stable person to be in charge of a plane’s safety. Julianne Moore is the first female lead, who acts as Jen Summers, a typical frequent flyer that lives every day to the fullest after dealing with critical health troubles. She takes the seat next to Bill and ends up being his counterpart in the airborne investigation. The second female lead being Michelle Dockery, or Nancy, who is a flight attendant that Bill puts his full trust in. The movie follows a basic premise upon which an international flight to London is being hijacked by one of the passengers on board, and unless 150 million dollars is transferred into a trust (ironically in Bill’s name), one passenger will die every twenty minutes.
Much of the movie is static: the ambiguous text messages, the setting, and the 20-minute timer. The information given in the trailer is about all you need to know for the entire 110 minutes. The only real twist is the fact that Bill is being framed as the true hijacker. This is frustrating at times, because his boss is constantly doubting him. After a YouTube video is released from one of the passengers, all of America believes Bill is the psychotic mastermind. If his boss trusts him enough to have a badge and a gun on board a transatlantic flight, he should try and listen more when Bill gives him information on the scene instead of believing a YouTube video.
The villain remains a mystery the entire time, as it should. After about the 8th person I pointed my finger at, I gave up on guessing. For it being such a small plane, they really do give you the run-around. At the end, we do get our answer as to why this is all happening. The mission objective of the hijacker(s) is to reveal the faulty security that the U.S. claims to have for its people. It is more of a challenge to the Federal Air Marshal than a matter of receiving the money. The hijacker(s) depict Bill as being weak because of his imperfections, but ultimately Bill rises to the challenge and comes out on top. He gains the trust of everyone aboard and the respect of his boss.
I agree with other critics in that it was a repetitive story line, and for being a thriller, the thrill seemed to be lacking. But there were exciting moments too. The fact that Julianne Moore and Liam Neeson have worked together before (Chloe) may have contributed to their harmonious relationship. Julianne, or Jen, is very much at ease in her role and her character is oddly calm during the whole dilemma. With that, she makes the film enjoyable.
There is no need to rush off to the theaters, unless you are a huge fan of Liam Neeson or Julianne Moore.