"Non-Stop"

The Irish man of action is back with his latest film, and after the goings on during "The Grey" you would think that he may wish to avoid aircraft, but no, our fearless Air Marshall is on board doing his bit to serve and protect.

William Marks is a tough as nails Air Marshall. But in a scenario that we have seen so many times before, he is at a low ebb. He drinks, he is at odds with his Superiors, and he has lost his family. I am sure this all sounds very familiar. And given the fact that he has some unease with certain aspects of air travel, you would think he may consider a career change.
But he carries on regardless. Given his job, he travels incognito. His only contact with the outside world is a secure network connection he can access through his phone. But when he starts to get messages from a mysterious third party, he gets concerned. But when those messages start to threaten the lives of his passengers, he really starts to get jumpy. Unfortunately for him, no-one believes his  stories of a killer on board, not even his fellow air marshall colleague. But despite his protestations, he goes it alone. And the threat states that a passenger will die every 20 minutes unless a substantial sum is paid into an account. Sure enough, on time, we have our first fatality, and it is quite inventive. The unfortunate thing for our hero is that real doubt is put on his claim, and the only finger of suspicion is pointing in his direction. Even the passengers are starting to turn against him.

The odds are really stacked against Marks, and it will some effort to clear his name, find the would be killer, and to get the plane safely on the ground.

As I have no doubt mentioned before on previous reviews of recent Neeson films, I admire the way that he has completely reinvented himself, in his 60's, as an action hero, especially one who can really kick arse, and who you would not want to mess with. And whilst this is not quite in the same standard as that set by the likes of "Taken" and "The Grey", it is however a vast improvement on the very dire "Taken 2".
There is decent support from the likes of Oscar nominee Julianne Moore, and "Downton Abbey"s very own Lady Mary is on hand to lend help as one of the air hostesses, alongside recent Oscar winner Lupito Nyong'o.
There is not as much action as one would expect from a Neeson film, then again with the action taking place in a confined space, which adds to the tension, and several thousands of feet in the air this makes it a little difficult. But it all comes together well, and is enjoyable enough.

One wonders with it having a 12 certificate at the cinema, if there will be a tougher version when the film is released on blu ray?
Also, despite my lack of aviational knowledge, one does wonder whether the plane would have stayed so intact, given what it is put through?  Then again it is a Neeson action thriller, so should I really care?

Good fun, maybe a 15 version could have had a better edge?...........6 outof 10.