A wild new mythology has lately permeated action movies — namely that the world is chock-full of hired assassins. They enjoy their own luxury hotel in the John Wick films. And they seem to enjoy traveling together in groups, as demonstrated in Bullet Train. Now dozens of them have boarded a plane in the new gonzo action-comedy marking James Madigan’s directorial debut. Starring Josh Hartnett in another example of his career rejuvenation, Fight or Flight represents the latest entry in what can only be described as a Hartnettaissance.
The actor, who after a years-long hiatus has made a strong comeback with such films as Oppenheimer and M. Night Shyamalan’s Trap, here delivers a terrific turn as a former government agent recruited for a dangerous mission. His charisma and surprising flair for physical comedy elevate this B-movie into something approaching A-level status, even if it’s ultimately undercut by its low-budget limitations and awkward tonal shifts.
But for much of the way, the film is a wild ride that should be enjoyed by anyone who’s ever lost circulation in their limbs from being cramped for hours on a long-distance flight. The vast majority of the proceedings, including an opening sequence providing a taste of the ultra-violent mayhem to come, consists of fight scenes taking place aboard a packed airplane.
How this came to be doesn’t really matter, but for the record, it involves Lucas Reyes (Hartnett), a former government operative who’s spent the last two years hiding in Thailand after a previous mission went disastrously wrong. He’s recruited by his former boss, and former lover, Katherine Brunt (Katee Sackhoff, enjoyably leaning into the absurdity, such as her character using CBD drops to calm herself down), who desperately needs him to apprehend The Ghost, a notorious cyber-terrorist of unknown identity who the organization has learned will be on a plane heading from Bangkok to San Francisco.
Reyes is in no shape for the task, having devolved into a drunken, Hawaiian shirt-wearing slob with a bad bleach job. But he reluctantly agrees and is soon aboard a packed flight on a jumbo jet, sitting next to a garrulous performer who demonstrates his dance moves for him. But as with so many of the passengers, his seatmate is not quite who he seems.
Reyes ultimately discovers that the plane is filled with assassins looking to kill the Ghost, and eventually him. Recruiting plucky female flight attendant Isha (Charithra Chandran, in quite the stylistic leap from Bridgerton) and her semi-hysterical colleague Royce (Danny Ashok, amusing) as allies, he finds himself battling dozens of foes while picking up some friends along the way, including the Ghost, whose revealed identity proves a surprise.
It’s basically all an excuse for Madigan — previously a second-unit director for such large-scale movies as Transformers: Rise of the Beasts and The Meg — to stage a series of elaborately choreographed fight scenes under extremely confined conditions. The director and his talented collaborators rise to the challenge, utilizing nearly every object you would find on a plane as a potential lethal weapon.
Brooks McLaren and D.J. Cotrona’s screenplay traffics heavily in humor, as demonstrated by such scenes in which Reyes, who’s already started drinking during the fight, does brutal battle with a combatant even after being heavily drugged. When his opponent expresses disbelief that he’s still standing, Reyes shrugs, pointing out, “You can’t pickle a pickle.” At another point, he’s forced to fight while on a psychedelic trip after ingesting toad venom.
Someone should alert the Thai government that their airport security is seriously lacking, judging by the sheer amount of weaponry, including guns, knives, and even a chainsaw, that the assassins have managed to spirit onto the plane. The last device provides the opportunity for one of the film’s wildest sequences, accompanied by Elvis Costello’s rousing “Pump It Up.” As for the guns, the killers would have benefited from a viewing of Goldfinger for an illustration of the dangers of shooting while aboard an aircraft.
It’s all a lot of fun, assuming you check your brain at the door and can stomach the copious amounts of gore that are gleefully served up. Besides the impressive fight choreography and athletic stunt work, what really makes Fight or Flight pop is Hartnett’s go-for-broke turn that finds him alternating between being a John Wick gone-to-seed and the sort of hapless living punching bag seen in Looney Tunes cartoons.
The actor demonstrates that he’s more than in on the joke, embracing the violent insanity of it all with an eagerness that proves enjoyably infectious. The film is rated R for violence, language, and some drug use, and it runs for 1 hour and 41 minutes.
Critics have begun to weigh in on the film, and early reviews on Rotten Tomatoes have been positive, with the movie currently holding an 82% rating. Some reviewers have praised Hartnett’s performance, with one even likening him to “Sully Sullenberger with a chainsaw,” a nod to the heroic airline pilot who famously landed a plane on the Hudson River.
Another critic, John Nugent of Empire Online, lauded Hartnett for delivering an “enjoyably deranged performance.” While some have pointed out that the film itself is standard fare, Hartnett’s charisma shines through, making it a fun ride overall. “Fight or Flight is absurdist action violence, making it a top contender for the year’s best action movie,” wrote Kate Sanchez on But Why Tho?.
As the film prepares to hit theaters on May 9, 2025, it promises to be a blend of action and humor that appeals to fans of the genre. With Hartnett’s return to the spotlight and a script that embraces its B-movie roots, Fight or Flight is set to deliver a thrilling cinematic experience.
