Customer Reviews

Airport 77 [VHS]

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(11)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

This is my favourite on the AIRPORT series(the second best being the CONCORDE - AIRPORT 79 for its sheer hilariousness - although look what happened outside Paris in the news today!) with some rather impressive special effects for its time. The plot revolves around an art billionaire Philip Stevens, played by JAMES STEWART, who invites an assortment of characters on to his private 747, piloted by JACK LEMMON. Lo and behold, his co-pilot(ROBERT FOXWORTH, who was also in THE PROPHECY and OMEN 2) has masterminded a hijacking, which goes horribly wrong when the plane hits an oil rig, ditches into the sea and settles underwater! Somehow the fuselage remains intact - who will survive! We can surely guess the outcome. Also there's a vet treating human injuries - this was done a year earlier for spoof value in Paramount's disaster movie send-up THE BIG BUS! Dear me! But this is a great piece of 1970s vintage cheese which will be enjoyed by all. The effects and underwater photography during the submarine-style rescue attempt are still superb, the plane interior sets are quite realistic for this type of movie and the cast of stars, as well as LEMMON and STEWART you get JOSEPH COTTEN, Dynasty's PAMELA BELLWOOD, Buck Rogers star GIL GERARD, LEE GRANT, OLIVIA DE HAVILLAND and once again GEORGE KENNEDY as Joe Patroni, liasing with the US Navy(some great military action here as well!) with the rescue attempt. I saw this on TV not so long ago for the first time in ages, and it'll definitely be included in my DVD collection!

Airport '77 is the story of bazillionaire Phillip Stevens (a slumming James Stewart) who is jetting some of his friends and colleagues and others on a luxury 747 to view his art collection which is going to become a museum, because, as we learn later...he has A FEW MONTHS TO LIVE!!! Unfortunately, some hijackers unleash some gas on the passengers and plan to swipe the artwork. But the plan goes awry when the plane crashes into the Bermuda Triangle.

Quite realistic, don't you think? The problem is the movie is boring. None of the characters make an impression. Let's see, there's the feuding couple with the wife who cheated on her husband, but that's never mentioned again; the old lady renewing a friendship with an old man; some kids who like to play Pong; a blind pianist who sings about seeing through "the eye of the beholder"; a bartender whose wife is about to give birth to twins, etc., etc. What are their names? I don't know, all I know is that they're bland characterizations meant to sustain interest before the big crash scene. Jack Lemmon is the pilot, and Brenda Vacarro is Eve, his love interest. They generate no heat at all.

To make a boring movie short, I just found this film bland and uninteresting. The big rescue scene is silly, and everything leading up to it is a waste of time. George Kennedy, who appeared in every Airport movie as Patroni, has about one minute of screentime here wherein he does nothing. Most of the movie is spent with people staring vacantly out the window, or squealing in pain. Much like the viewer would do.

This film, like all of the Airport movies is loaded with stars (something that a low-budget film could NEVER do today). Jack Lemmon, Jimmy Stewart, Lee Grant, George Kennedy, Olivia DeHavilland, Kathleen Quinlan, etc, etc...

While I must admit, the plot of the movie is rather fantastic, consdering a 747 hitting the water at 200 knots+ would break up. But, one thing that I am impressed with is the aircraft realism (the same goes for Airport '75). The production unit really went out of their way to represent the 747 in an accurate way. This film, along with Airport '75, utilized the American Airlines 747 flight simulators in Dallas, TX, thus providing the audience with a true-to-life cockpit environment. Therefore, this is a MUST for aviation buffs...

My only complaint about this movie is the quality of the DVD...Despite being a below-average transfer, it offers no special features or deleted scenes. Anyone who has seen the TV version of this movie knows that there is a lot of extra footage, especially in the beginning. Hopefully, there will be another release somewhere down the road...Maybe a collector's box of all the Airport films?

Ignore the reviews of those who gave this movie only one or two stars. Granted, this is not the best movie ever made but it is a piece of our ever-evolving movie history. It is in no way useless or "ridiculous" as other Amazon.com viewers have stated. (I should also add that those who write reviews should spell "correctly." I've always said if you don't know how to spell a word, look it up in the dictionary.) As for this movie - it is an historical treasure. How can it possibly be anything but a treasure with wonderful actors such as Jack Lemmon, Gil Gerard and Jimmy Stewart! If you are wanting 21st century special effects - forget it. You won't find it in this movie. However, you will find a piece of marvelous nostalgia - historical movie magic in all its 1970s style glory! Ignore those who call this movie worthless. Some people take life way too seriously. These are the same people who take movies way too seriously. Some are meant to be for entertainment only. This movie entertains just as well as any other classic Airport movie or any other disaster movie for that matter. If you are a highly critical snob, you won't like this movie. If you lived in the 70s and want a piece of history just for the fun of it, this video is not a waste of money. Loosen up, relax and enjoy.

Airport 77 is probably the series best film. Second to Airport 75. The music score is great. To me the special effects were great. I didn't see any dumb effects. The cast was so fantastic. I am surprised some of them even come out of their shells for a movie but i am glad they did. Jack Lemmon heading the distinguished cast with Christopher Lee, Jimmy Stewart, Olivia de Havilland, Lee Grant & Brenda Vercarro.

A luxury 747 takes off from Washington DC packed with priceless art and lots of VIPs on their way to Steves (stewart) musuem where they will donate their part of the art. Grant as a drunk wife, de Havilland kindling old love and playing a hand, Lee planning for future living and dealing the with his drunk wife, Lemmon flying the big 747 and wanting to marry long time girlfriend Brenda Vacarro, Brenda Vercarro playing the head stewardess and girl friend to lemmon.

Bring out a boxset and a extra dvd with lots of info, bios and deleted scenes. And visit the AIRPORT DATABASE for lots of info and speak on our forum!

Although this is not one of the best films I have seen per se it stands out as memorably daft but highly enjoyable. It stands as the best of the four Airport films and is complimented with a fine cast who do more than just play it by the numbers, tempting as it may be. It may sound silly - a plane crashing into the sea, sinking beneath the waves leaving the crew and passengers with the difficult problem of getting out - but somehow it works. An enjoyable piece of nonsense to wile away a couple of hours.

This is a good transfer DVD - the picture and sound are good. My only complaint would be the lack of features - no trailer, no biographies, not even a mention of its "siblings". Still, a worthy addition to my collection.

I know, I know it's not that bad!......'Airport 77' is actually better than I rememebered, but it's hard not to think of these films as predecessors to the 'Love Boat'! Like most of these movies the first three quarters of an hour or so is just meeting the cast and setting up the inevitable disaster that will unfold, but once this one gets going, it does keep up the tension....just don't think about the credibility of it too long! It's available on a box set with the other 3 Airport films at a bargain price so it your a fan of the series.......

When millionaire collector James Stewart is talking about the guests he will be flying in for the opening of his museum, he tells reporters, "I think you'll all agree we brought them here in style." The sharp viewer will, of course, recognize irony in those words because this is an Airport movie and his guests are guaranteed anything but a comfortable flight. I've always had a soft spot for the Seventies' disaster flicks, and this is one of my favourites. Art hijackers plan to take control of Stewart's jet to steal his cargo and leave his passengers, put to sleep by gas, sitting on the plane on a remote island. But this is a disaster movie and the hijacking doesn't go quite as planned, leaving the airplane sitting on the bottom of the ocean instead. It's intact, but slowly flooding and with the fresh air disappearing rapidly. It becomes a race against time to somehow signal for help while the Coast Guard and Navy search for the missing plane, well of course from where they expect it to be. The Seventies' disaster flicks usually had great casts, and this is no exception. Jack Lemmon is very intense and convincing as the heroic captain and Brenda Vaccaro brings warmth and vulnerability to her character as the stewardess/assistant to Stewart. Lee Grant chews the scenery (as she sometimes did), playing the drinking bitter wife of the emotionally distant Christopher Lee, while Olivia de Havilland is amusing as a poker playing art patron. Darren McGavin, Pamela Bellwood, and M. Emmett Walsh are also quite effective in supporting roles. Given the time, the special effects are good, both as the plane crashes and as it floods during the rescue attempt. The set design of the unique jet is excellent. The rescue procedure is hard to believe, despite the mandatory disclaimer at the end that it was a real technique used. Far from a great film, Airport '77 is an entertaining film, well cast and fun to watch.

The Airport films are a guilty pleasure for me, and have been since I was very young. I finally got around to buying this DVD just recently and I was both pleased and disappointed. What was pleasing was seeing the film with clarity and in widescreen. All I had previously was an old 1980's VHS copy of the movie. So that was quite good.

However, the DVD transfer is very disappointing. In the beginning where we see Philip Stevens (James Stewart), his jacket moves around something horrible (due to it being a checked pattern). The same thing happens throughout the film with other costumes, and certain portions have a digital overtone to them (there's a term for it but I can't remember what that is).

The film itself is quite good - you get to see people like the aforementioned James Stewart, the delightful Olivia de Havilland (seeing her as a card shark in a scene in this film is vastly amusing!), Brenda Vaccaro (always talented), and a host of other stars. Jack Lemmon is also extremely good as the hero in this film - taking the role seriously and producing something different for him.

A fairly gripping storyline that you should take for what it is. It manages to hold up without succumbing to the usual 70's disaster flick bad lines and formula - and I would hazard a guess that the stellar acting from the very talented cast is partly the reason for this. As James Stewart said, "It's an adventure film, and there have always been adventure films".

Finally, what would have been nice on the DVD? The original trailer... the approximately 40 minutes of scenes that appear only in the Network TV version (which I have on VHS as well - a lot of gems there - even as an extra feature, it would be good)... and of course the original bios and photos that came in the original press kit (which I also have). Of course, a better transfer would be nice too. So I am hopeful that someday a new one will be released... until then, this is better than my VHS copy!

AIRPORT 77 is a camp classic, full of great moments which leave you open-mouthed with the audacity of it all. Jack Lemmon gains points by taking it seriously, but the highlights include Lee Grant and Christopher Lee giving it a bit of "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf" and James Stewart playing, well, himself. Pretty good effects for the era, and the dialogue is something else. Great disguise scene at the start, involving changing hair colour and putting on a false moustache.