When it comes to discussing cinema’s all-time greatest action heroes, Harrison Ford‘s name doesn’t come up anywhere near often enough, which is strange when you consider that he played both Han Solo and Indiana Jones, although George Lucas’ Original Trilogy was admittedly more of an ensemble effort than a star-powered venture.
Even outside of those two iconic roles, the actor has proven his chops on numerous occasions. It might have been a generational thing, given that he was much more of an everyman when the musclebound likes of Schwarzenegger and Stallone were dominating the genre in the 1980s, and he was in his 50s by the time the focus shifted to younger, more realistic and relatable figures like Nicolas Cage and Keanu Reeves a decade later.
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade may have arrived in 1989, but Ford’s peak as an action star arguably came in the 90s. In the space of a few years he played Jack Ryan twice in Patriot Games and Clear and Present Danger, headlined Best Picture nominee The Fugitive and became Hollywood’s most badass president in Air Force One, which hit big in the summer of 1997.
The concept can pretty much be boiled down to ‘Die Hard on a plane’, but Harrison Ford‘s gruff charisma coupled with Gary Oldman’s memorable performance as an over-the-top Russian extremist created a fantastic dynamic between the hero and villain. Throw in Wolfgang Petersen’s efficient direction and several standout set pieces and you’ve got a recipe for blockbuster excellence. Air Force One has been added to the Netflix library as of today, and it’s time for an entirely new generation to discover the joys of watching the Commander in Chief take matters into his own hands.
Published: Jul 1, 2021 08:21 am