Hijacked: Flight 285 (1996)

There were a surprising number of plane hijacking thrillers made during the 1990s and HIJACKED: FLIGHT 285 is a TV movie reworking of the format. Sadly, it turns out to be an overly familiar and largely tedious affair, one bogged down by long-winded conversations and a real lack of suspense. It doesn't help that the camerawork is very static and the dark backdrop of the film makes it look cheap more than anything else. The one thing this has going for it is the cast, with appearances from many '80s stars including Anthony Michael Hall, Ally Sheedy, James Brolin, Perry King and Michael Gross, but even all those actors can't breathe life into a flaccid script.

Ruthless convicted murderer Peter Cronin (well played with lipsmacking wicked relish by Anthony Michael Hall) is being transported to prison on a commercial airliner. Trouble ensues when Cronin hijacks the plane and demands twenty million in bail bonds. It's up to FBI negotiator Deni Patton (a sturdy performance by Ally Sheedy) to keep things under control. Director Charles Correll, working from a compact script by David Peckinpah, keeps the enjoyable and engrossing story moving along at a snappy pace, generates a good deal of tension, and stages some exciting last reel action with skill and flair. The sound acting by the able cast helps a lot: Michael Gross as good-hearted disabled Vietnam veteran Ben Horner, Casey Sander as the brave Steve Paulsen, Barbara Stock as gutsy captain Veronica Mitchell, Perry Lang as hard-nosed fed Frank Layton, Hudson Leick as Cronin's loyal accomplice Shayna Loring, David Graf as an obnoxious cowardly drunk, and James Brolin as easygoing copilot Ron Showman. Moreover, Hall has a ball portraying a real evil and dangerous bad guy. Worth a watch.

I originally watched this movie because I'm a HUGE Breakfast club fan and I wanted to see Anthony Michael Hall and Ally Sheedy work together. I'm very glad I watched, it is a great tv movie and Anthony and Ally did wonderful. Anthony in my opinion did a good job as a bad guy and you could tell he had fun doing it, although at first all I seen him as is Sweet Brian from Breakfast club so at times it was hard seeing him be mean to others and to Ally's character. So if this movie is ever on I recommend watching.

Slick, well paced and sharply played, H:F285 is a competent and satisfying romp. Yes, it's just a re-hash of the Airport genre, but it manages to look and feel fresh thanks to a cast of actual actors (remember them?) and restrained direction that never attempts to overstep the modest budget.The vast majority of the action takes place in the "forty feet long, thirty feet wide" cinema variety plane interior, but this isn't necessarily a bad thing as it induces mild viewer cabin fever after an hour or so.If you enjoy watching sweaty balding A list actors stripping down to their vests and and blowing up, well, everything, then this isn't for you. However, if you enjoy character interplay, building tension that actually gets you involved in the story, and restrained - by Hollywood standards - resolution, give it a spin.