It begins with a series of excerpts from newscasts about The Tribe and drug smuggling, and some stuff about billionaire Bruce Lieb (Craig Fairbrass). It seems like quite a lot, and my brain tends to lose focus when too much information is presented in that fashion. But no worries. You don't really need to follow all of it, as the important stuff is repeated later.
Agent Paul Ross gets called with a tip regarding The Tribe, and so he brings in his good friend Joe Ballard (Vinnie Jones) to help lead a special task force. Basically at this point Joe and Paul are the only ones who still believe that The Tribe is real (even after all those newscasts), and so they have something to prove. They are ambushed and Joe is killed. His death scene is one of the weaker moments of the film. He hears a gun being cocked behind him, and instead of dropping, or ducking, or jumping to the side, he just stands there and says, "Do it, bitch." And she does. Good for her.
Anyway, they find some information on a computer from the scene leading them to think that billionaire Bruce Lieb is a target, that he will be attacked on his private plane. Meanwhile, Olivia Rousseau (Tiffany Dupont) is hired as a public relations person for Bruce. Olivia also happens to be Paul's ex-fiancee. Paul tries to convince Bruce not to fly at this particular time, but failing that, accepts an invitation to join the security team on board (mostly because he learns Olivia is also on board).
We're introduced to everyone else on this plane, including Michelle (Bruce's half-sister, played by Gina Philips). And we learn a bit about the plane itself, particularly that Bruce's cabin is impenetrable. And, as we know from the film's title, things go wrong. Three people are sneaked aboard the plane by at least one person on the inside. When these terrorists kill two people, the insider is surprised by this and says, "No more of this." But they keep doing more of this.
They take over the plane and demand 2.73 billion from Bruce's company. They tie up the remaining passengers, but Paul Ross is able to get free and take out one of the hijackers. Except he only knocks him out, rather than killing him when he has the chance. That's completely retarded, and not really believable. I guess it's to keep the tension up; because otherwise it would be two hijackers verses two security people (Paul and Bruce's regular security guy). But then Paul makes the same mistake again, and with the same guy. He hits him over the head with a cricket bat, and then drops the bat like an idiot in a Friday The 13th film.
Paul and the other security guy make the mistake again and again with the other two hijackers, tying them up rather than killing them. So of course they get free. Stuff like that is seriously irritating. The film could have benefited from another draft of the script, because certainly there are other ways of keeping the suspense going.
But the film surprisingly held my interest, and I did get caught up in it. There are some good twists and turns along the way. The film keeps you guessing for a while, as it's not clear exactly who is behind this entire plot. You think one person, then are put into doubt again by an additional piece of information. And are these hijackers even members of The Tribe? They themselves don't say. All of that is handled well. It's not a great film, but if you're looking for a fun low-budget action film, Hijacked pretty much fits the bill. However, I was left with a couple of questions at the end.
And there is some bad dialogue. Like this:
Paul: "Thank you."
Olivia: "For what?"
Paul: "Being you."
Me: "Ugh."
But that is to be expected and almost enjoyed in a low-budget action film.
And fortunately I didn't notice Randy Couture's ears until near the end. But once I did, I couldn't stop looking at them. If you were a kid considering taking up wrestling, I would think that looking at the ears of just two or three professionals would be enough to dissuade you and make you decide to play baseball or run track instead.
Hijacked was directed by Brandon Nutt, who also directed 2009's The Last Resort. The screenplay was written by Declan O'Brien, with story by Scoop Wasserstein.
Hijacked is scheduled to be released on DVD and on a Blu-ray/DVD combo pack on July 31, 2012 from Anchor Bay. There are no special features on the DVD.
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