Flight of the Phoenix

2004
PG-13
1h 53m

IMDb RATING

6.1/10

57K

YOUR RATING

Dennis Quaid, Giovanni Ribisi, Miranda Otto, and Tyrese Gibson in Flight of the Phoenix (2004)

Play trailer2:30

2 Videos

38 Photos

Desert Adventure Psychological Drama Survival Action Adventure Drama Romance Thriller

Survivors of a plane crash in the Mongolian desert work together to build a new plane.Survivors of a plane crash in the Mongolian desert work together to build a new plane.Survivors of a plane crash in the Mongolian desert work together to build a new plane.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

6.1/10

57K

YOUR RATING

See production info at IMDbPro

Awards
- 2 nominations

Trivia
The model used for the crash sequence cost $250,000 and was so perfectly built it actually flew further than the crew and testing had predicted. In fact it flew so far it hit the camera filming it and broke the cameraman's leg.

Goofs
The nomads have dromedary camels which are native to Arabia whereas the Bactrian camel is native to the Gobi desert.

Quotes
Frank Towns: Why give people false hope?
Liddle: Come on man.Most people spend their whole lives hanging on to hopes and dreams that are never going to come true but they hold on to them. Why are you going to give up on them now when you need them most?
Frank Towns: You are assuming I'm one of those people who has hopes and dreams.
Liddle: I find it hard to believe that a man who learns to fly never had a dream.
Frank Towns: Look, how can I let those people build that plane when I don't believe it will work? And, every day they waste trying to build it brings them one day closer to dying.
Liddle: I think a man only needs one thing in life. He just needs someone to love. If you can't give him that, then give him something to hope for. And if you can't give him that, just give him something to do.
[James tosses the water bottle back to Frank and walks away]
Frank Towns: James, you'll never make it.
Liddle: Then I'll die trying. There are people counting on me.
Frank Towns: Okay, Okay, Okay. Okay. We'll build it. Just come back with me.

Connections
Featured in Phoenix Diaries (2005)

Soundtracks
I've Been Everywhere
Written by Geoff Mack
Performed by Johnny Cash
Courtesy of American Recordings, LLC
Under license from Universal Music Enterprises

User reviews244

Review

Featured review

5/10

Mediocre remake

This version of "Flight of the Phoenix" was released at the end of 2004 and is a modern take on the 1965 film with Jimmy Stewart.

THE PLOT: A group of mostly oil workers crash land in the Gobi Desert where being found by a search party is unlikely. One of the passengers turns out to be an airplane designer who insists that they can create a new plane with the workable parts of the wreckage. Although an outlandish idea, it may be their only legitimate chance at survival.

The plot is exactly the same as the original version with a few notable differences: It takes place about 40 years later; it includes a woman (Miranda Otto); it features a more racially mixed cast; and it takes place in the Gobi Desert rather than the Libyan Desert (although it was shot in Namibia, while the original was filmed in the deserts of SE California).

I'm not one of those people who hates the very idea of remakes. I'm open to filmmakers taking a heralded classic and modernizing it, like the excellent remake of "The Parent Trap." That's what we get with this remake of "Flight of the Phoenix," except that it's not excellent. But it's not bad either.

Although there are some new touches that are as good or even superior to the original (Like Liddle's powerful line to Towns in the debris field, as well as the confrontation with the Mongols sequence), this modernization ultimately pales in the shadow of the original. Why? There's less focus on character development and therefore the movie has less interesting characters. Instead the filmmakers opt for scenes that might maintain the attention of those with ADHD, like an explosion scene, a lightning storm sequence and a dubious attack by the Mongol smugglers at the very end (shouldn't they have attacked while they were pulling the aircraft? Or earlier?). But the biggest negative is that the movie just lacks the brilliant dramatic flow of the original.

The film runs 113 minutes.

FINAL WORD: This would be a better film for anyone who hasn't seen the original, but if you've seen the '65 version it's just so mediocre by comparison. Still, it's worth checking out if, like me, you love survival films. And it is interesting to see a different take on the same basic story.

GRADE: C