Unoriginal & Lacking A Cutting Edge
There are some films that manage to break through the conventional, clichéd horror genre and become so bad they’re good. Flight 666 feels like a film that’s trying hard to emulate the incredulous hilarity brought on from films like Sharknado but fails to really nail the tone effectively in a film that fails on every level to be a convincing horror. There is some promise here though and given how low-budget this film is, there’s at least an attempt to make an enjoyable film. Only Director Rob Pallatina can answer whether Flight 666 is supposed to be taken seriously or not but armed with a host of cheesy archetypal characters, a weak narrative about a haunted plane and some questionable acting, it does feel closer to the latter. Dwarfed by a massive storm, the film begins with a plane experiencing turbulence while taking a routine flight from LA to New York. After some uneasiness from one of the passengers, panic begins to infect the rest as the film wears on as they contend with the storm, turbulence and a mysterious supernatural force that seems to be haunting the plane. For the first 30 minutes or so Flight 666 manages to keep up a consistent pace and a good level of dread with its core characters helping to drive the narrative forward. It’s around this point the film falls into a bit of a rut, struggling to find ways to increase the tension again before rattling forward into its final act where all hell breaks loose. While there are certainly worse films out there, some of which we’ve reviewed in the past couple of week, Flight 666 just doesn’t quite have the chops to execute its concept with flair and originality. With a more self-aware tone and a tighter script, there’s potential here for a sleeper hit and the next Sharknado fad but unlike a tornado full of sharks, a haunted plane just doesn’t hold anything particularly new or innovative and perhaps that’s one of the biggest problems with the film. Flight 666 feels like a film that’s drawn inspiration from a number of different films, including Snakes On A Plane which the film hilariously jokes about during one of the more clever bites of dialogue, showing a self-awareness lacking for much of the film. Had the rest of this 90 minute horror followed suit Flight 666 could have become something of a guilty pleasure but despite the promise early on, Flight 666 is a largely forgettable film that can’t quite muster up the courage to better the films it tries hard to emulate.
