Movies: Passenger 57

Wesley Snipes' first big action movie hit was this unassuming little movie from 1992 directed by Kevin Hooks. It's essentially "Die Hard" on a plane - airline security expert John Cutter faces off against an elite team of terrorists. I mean, they copy the premise of "Die Hard" exactly, right down to the terrorist leader who talks with an accent and the mostly-bumbling police response.

What they didn't copy, however, was any of the tension, action, or humor in "Die Hard." Most of the fights boil down to opportunities for Snipes to show off his martial arts skills, and you never really get the sense that he's affected by the experience in any way (especially if you compare it to the beating that John McClane took).

There's also some Godawful one-liners in this one. I suppose if you take it as unintentional parody, it's watchable:



Not exactly "Yippie-ki-yay, motherf*****," is it?

Rating: 3/10