7500
AMAZONJoseph Gordon Levitt returns from his self-imposed acting exile to star in Patrick Vollrath's well crafted and taut hijacking thriller 7500, with a strong central performance in a film that sadly succumbs to contextual perpetuation.
Shot in, for what is the most part, a singular setting of an airline cockpit, Vollrath's film exploits and utilises its intimacy with compelling effect. It is claustrophobic, intense and densely gripping to see this narrative unfold. Often too deliberating, in fact, as the cinematography from Sebastian Thaler often blends between documentary and narrative cinema with its invading aesthetic. By not removing the audience from the cockpit, Vollrath's film continually keeps the viewer engaged and on their toes regarding its unpredictive narrative. Furthermore, the production design from Thorsten Sabel crafts a bleak and muted visual setting of greys and blues that convict a dark and gripping mood.
Joseph Gordon Levitt impresses as airline pilot Tobias. Levitt has most, if not all, of the screentime as the sole character, giving a gripping and modest emotional exercise in trauma. While this is not a defining performance in the actors' filmography, Levitt showcases a decent amount of skill with the little amount of depth the screenplay by writer-director Patrick Vollrath and co-writer Senad Halilbasic offer.
The screenplay, however, has more extensive problems. Namely being the aforementioned contextual perpetuation. The hijackers in question are simplistic caricatures of Islamic terrorists. No depth or material is afforded to these characters and performances, and what is ultimately is crafted are one-note, paradoxical stereotypes that perpetuate the myth that all Muslims are terrorists — almost refusing to dig deeper even to showcase why these groups are committing the horrifying acts that occur — ultimately coming across as an exploit of terror for warped entertainment purposes, rather than exploring and identifying the terror in question.
