* This article reveals some of the film's plot.

The film is inspired by a real hijacking that shocked Vietnamese aviation history in 1978. Almost 50 years later, Ham Tran is the first director to bring this subject to the Vietnamese screen.

In Hollywood and some other film industries in the region, films on this topic are not uncommon, such as Air Force One (starring Harrison Ford) and Die Hard 2 (starring Bruce Willis). Compared to these classics, Ham Tran's story isn't groundbreaking, but it is engaging thanks to its sensible editing, tense rhythm, and numerous climaxes.

The film opens with a domestic hijacking in 1977, where criminals attack the flight crew and force a change in the flight plan to a foreign country. After this incident, aviation security is tightened. However, airport security at that time lacked modern scanning equipment and relied on manual metal detectors.

Exploiting this vulnerability, another hijacking occurs in 1978 with a similar objective. Long (Thai Hoa) leads the group, along with his accomplices Ti (Vo Dien Gia Huy), Suu (Bao Dinh) - Long's son, and Dan (Ray Nguyen), disguised as passengers, concealing weapons on their persons to board flight HVN 602.

After a slow 30-minute introduction of the characters, the film's pace intensifies when the hijackers reveal their true nature. The terrorists take two flight attendants (Kaity Nguyen and Tram Anh) hostage, using their lives to threaten the pilots in the cockpit, ready to eliminate anyone who gets in their way. From here, the script revolves around a life-or-death struggle in the air between good and evil.

Kaity Nguyen - as flight attendant Trinh, and Bao Dinh - as Suu. Photo: Thanh Huyen

The film's appeal primarily lies in Ham Tran's directing. The airplane cabin, the primary setting for most of the film, is used to exploit the audience's fear of confined spaces. The crew built a 1:1 scale model of a real airplane cabin, which could be assembled and disassembled to allow for various camera angles. This, combined with the panicked screams of women and children and the helplessness of the flight crew, are juxtaposed with close-ups of the criminals' cold, brutal expressions.

The film also features torture scenes characteristic of the body horror genre. Long continuously torments the two flight attendants, pressuring them to cry for help, forcing his accomplices in the cockpit to rescue them. All of this creates a tense atmosphere, leaving viewers with little respite.

Although the script falls into the action genre, the director doesn't focus solely on martial arts and fighting, but delves into the psychological nuances of both the protagonists and antagonists. Both sides constantly engage in mind games, employing tactics to find weaknesses and defeat the other. At times, the disadvantage seems to lean towards the criminals. But in just one scene, the situation shifts as they regain control.

Since it's based on a true story, most viewers know the ending beforehand. However, Ham Tran creates surprises with plot twists. Throughout the film, the backgrounds of some characters are kept hidden, prompting curiosity and leading viewers to analyze and predict the "mastermind" behind the plot.

Long (Thai Hoa) - one of the film's antagonists. Photo: Thanh Huyen

This is a rare Vietnamese film where screen time is evenly distributed between protagonists and antagonists. Most roles have specific backstories to explain their motivations. Among them, Long stands out as a terrorist with a strategic mind. Thai Hoa portrays a middle-aged man with an ordinary, somewhat austere appearance, but hiding inner cruelty and coldness.

With experience in torturing criminals, Long overwhelms his victims with physical pain and psychological manipulation. But even as a criminal, in the end, the character is a father, still frightened and desperate in moments of life and death with his son. Thai Hoa shared that to embody the role, he imagined a complete story for Long, such as him being an abused child who grew up to love violence.

The other antagonists, like the brothers Ti and Dan, also have backstories, albeit only revealed through dialogue. On the opposing side, Binh, the air marshal (played by Thanh Son), is an "everyday hero" type of character, acting out of a belief in justice. Ultimately, whether good or evil, all the characters' actions in the film stem from the same underlying cause: family ties. The director incorporates some humorous elements to lighten the mood, mainly through Chuot (Tieu Bao Quoc) and Meo (Thien Tu), an age-gap couple.

The film uses sound and background music to evoke tension and claustrophobia, from the ticking clock counting down to the erratic heartbeat or the clang of metal. Cold and warm color tones are also intentionally used in various segments, creating a sense of tension and isolation.

Audience member and director Phan Gia Nhat Linh praised the film for its suspense and thrills until the very last minute. He believes the film showcases the modern filmmaking techniques of the domestic crew, from building the airplane model to the filming style in confined spaces. Writer Duong Binh Nguyen commented that despite the large number of characters, each has enough screen time to create depth, a rarity in Vietnamese action films.

At the film's premiere in TP HCM on 16/9, two witnesses of the hijacking, Captain Pham Trung Nam and flight attendant Ngo Kim Thanh, were moved while watching the film. They praised the film's high level of realism, with many scenes evoking memories of the incident. Mr. Trung Nam found it thrilling and suspenseful to watch, while Ms. Kim Thanh noted some fictionalized aspects, believing these creative liberties made the film more lively and engaging.

The film has some drawbacks in the graphics of the bomb explosion scenes. Some viewers also expressed concern about the numerous violent and bloody segments. The film is rated 16+ (prohibited for viewers under 16) by the Cinema Department. The producer stated that the 16+ rating ensures viewers have enough maturity to handle the content while still allowing the film to reach a wide audience. After one day of release, the film earned 15 billion VND, according to Box Office Vietnam.

Mai Nhat