Movie Review: Flight That Disappeared (1961)
Synopsis: Trans-Coast Airways Flight 60 is enroute from Los Angeles to Washington D.C. with a team of scientists that have the combined knowledge to create a super weapon. While approaching a storm, the plane begins to ascend on its own, reaching a height that should be impossible for it to reach and causing all on board to pass out from the lack of oxygen. When the three scientists wake up, they find they have been placed in a state of suspended time so they can face a jury from the future for their role in destroying the world.
Who's in it? The movie stars Craig Hill, Paula Raymond, Dayton Lummis, Meg Wyllie and Harvey Stephens.
Review: After watching a pair of classic teen movies the past couple of days, I decided to change things up this morning and go with something different. I settled on Flight That Disappeared and wasn't disappointed.
The movie is fairly basic, introduce the main characters, have the plane begin flying itself and then place the three scientists, Tom (Hill), Marcia (Raymond) and Dr. Morris (Lummis) on trial while giving the standard Cold War lecture about the dangers of developing powerful bombs. However, despite the basic plot, it still managed to be entertaining.
I think the thing that stood out most for me was the trial scene, which managed to have a very ominous feel to it, both because of the background and because of the way the jury was portrayed - solemn and silent. When mixed in with the stock footage of actual atomic bomb destruction, it was something that could give a lot of people chills.
On top of it, there was no clear way for the three to get out of the situation. It wasn't a scenario where they could justify their contribution toward the end of the world and keeping them in a state of limbo to prevent the information they possessed from being used did seem like a reasonable solution.
The end of the film had a few nice twists as well, including confusion over whether the plane had experienced problems or not. It resulted in a satisfying conclusion that worked with the rest of the film, something that isn't as common as you would think.
Final Opinion: It's a simple but entertaining science fiction film that does a good job delivering its message. It's worth taking the time to watch.
My Grade: A
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Here are some reviews of other science fiction films:
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