7500

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I'm a hardcore fan of one-location, claustrophobic thrillers. If the atmosphere is suspenseful and tense enough, it can elevate the film in unimaginable ways. I'm also easily entertained by movies set on a plane like Non-Stop or the classic Snakes on a Plane. 7500 spends pretty much its entire runtime inside the cockpit of a hijacked plane, going for a more realistic depiction of the point of view of the pilots. It combines two aspects that I deeply appreciate in film, making it a really captivating subgenre. However, is it any good?

Story-wise, it doesn't truly create anything extraordinarily unique. Although I appreciate that it doesn't follow the over-the-top, absolutely crazy action sometimes displayed in this type of movies, which can be way too exaggerated, defying all laws of physics and reality. In this case, the viewer gets to see how things develop solely through the eyes of Tobias as well as his cockpit screen and audio. So, don't expect an action-packed flight because 7500 is far from that. It's a technically unusual take on a story told several times in many different ways.

The best aspect of the film is the one I was looking forward to the most: the atmosphere. Patrick Vollrath, debutant writer-director, can generate enough tension and suspense to grab viewers for the first hour. Tobias finds himself with extremely challenging moral dilemmas, where there's no right answer, and all have severe consequences. Watching this part of the screenplay play out is the most exciting component of the movie, which is elevated by the fact that all occurs inside the claustrophobic cockpit.

Joseph Gordon-Levitt, who has been away from the central spotlight since 2013's Don Jon, delivers one of the best performances I've ever seen from him. He keeps the film flying by continuously acting the hell out of his script. Without his emotionally convincing display, 75...