'7500' Review: Raw, quiet, visceral chaos will immerse viewers and keep them on the edge of their seat
Spoilers for '7500'
The task that '7500' sets for itself is not an easy one. It seeks to make an action thriller movie that contains none of the typical tricks that Hollywood uses to spice things up. Elaborately choreographed action scenes, wide impressive shots and an action hero who takes down the bad guys and single-handedly saves the day - none of these are things that '7500' features. Yet despite its eschewing of the conventional narrative tools, the film will have you on the edge of your seat all the way and all of it told from inside a single cockpit.
The film follows the story of Tobias Ellis (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), a co-pilot whose plane is hijacked. Tobias is forced to make several difficult choices in the face of Islamic terrorists who will stop at nothing to get into the cockpit and seize control of the plane. With his captain quickly dead after the initial attack, he holds his passengers' lives in his hands and only flight security policy to guide him.
The movie is incredibly immersive. Everyone whose ever been on a flight will recognize that distinctive whine of the engines as the plane takes off, that remains the entire time the plan is in the air, the minor turbulence and muffled clunks you hear the plane make through it. The film takes a lot of time setting up that immersion - there's no music for emotional cues and the film further limits itself by being set entirely in the cockpit. There are peeks at the cabin just outside the cockpit through a monitor, but aside from that, the claustrophobic setting is where the movie remains.
When the action comes, it is sudden, quick and confusing. Even knowing that a hijacking is coming, it takes you by surprise. The initial burst of action is all very quick and it's not until after that there's time to unpack and realize just what's happened. The silence of the film's realistically rushed action really drives home the shock of sudden violence. Once the hijacking begins, it's a long time before the pace slows down - the constant knocking against the door, the yelling of the hijackers who demand their needs be met, all of it triggers a primal alarm response in the body and all of it feels incredibly visceral.
As far as plot goes, the movie is relatively straightforward - establishing stakes, introducing the film's main conflict and slowly escalating from there. Though obviously a brave man, Tobias is no gung-ho hero. He follows the necessary protocol under great duress and never gets that satisfying one-up over the bad guys. He is a man doing his best to ride out a difficult situation, making whatever compromises he can to get the maximum amount of people out alive.
Omid Memar also stars as Vedat, the youngest of the hijackers, who quickly realizes that he's in over his head and does not want to die. He forms a fragile connection with Tobias - they're two people making their best of a disaster and are trying to find their way through it. Vedat is by no means portrayed as a sympathetic character, but the fear, hopelessness and desperation in his eyes are powerfully portrayed and add to the tension of the scene once he becomes a bigger part of the story.
'7500' is slow to start, but it's an important part of drawing a viewer in, lulling them into a false sense of security before ramping things up into high gear that doesn't let up until it's all over. The movie keeps your heart racing, gives you very little time to process the events as they're happening, and all but puts the viewer into the cockpit itself. If you have the patience to immerse yourself in the film completely, the experience is absolutely worth diving into.
'7500' is now available to stream on Amazon Prime.