This air catastrophe movie blends drama , intrigue , disaster spectacle , suspense and emotional byplay with romance included . Plastic acting and stock characters detailing a hectic flight in 747 Boeing . This is the original of four movies in the "Airport" series . It's exciting and amusing but full clichés and stereotypes with acceptable performance by top-of-the-range actors . The movie is another jetliner epic with all star cast in ¨Grand Hotel¨ plot formula that reaches his zenith in this exciting film . Taking place on a fateful winter night , a commercial airline of the American Airlines 747 Boeing ( piloted by Dean Martin , Gary Collins , Barry Nelson ) . Then Commandant Dean Martin along with crew and flight attendant ( Jacqueline Bisset who brings conviction to her character as dedicated stewardess and Dean Martin's lover ) taking on a dangerous bomber (Van Heflin) . The film is detailing hectic flighty and the relationship among passengers . All clichéd and stock roles with regurgitation of all usual stereotypical situations from disaster films , the nuns, an aging woman ( Helen Hayes who won Academy Award as likable stowaway ), nervous passengers . Taking place on freeze and rainy skies as background and the airplane heading to Rome .
This ultra-slick picture contains thriller , suspense , melodrama , moderate tension and is quite entertaining although with some flaws and gaps . Filmed at the height of the disaster genre from the 7os , this entry in the spectacular series profits of a strong acting by Burt Lancaster and Dean Martin bringing life to main characters and remaining actors formed by all-star-cast . And of course appears the classic character Patroni played by usual George Kennedy who will his role in subsequent sequels . This old-fashioned motion picture is professionally directed by George Seaton ( Country girl , Miracle on 34th street ) . It's followed by ¨Airport 1975¨ by Jack Smight with Charlton Heston , Karen Black and Gloria Swanson , ¨Airport 1977¨ by Jerry Jameson with Jack Lemmon and James Stewart and ¨Airport 79 the Concorde¨ by David Lowell Rich with Alain Delon and Robert Wagner . Furthermore , ¨ Skyjacked (1972) ¨ by John Guillermin with Charlton Heston and the film was parodied heavily in Airplane! (1980) by Jim Abrahams and David Zucker . It's an inoffensive diversion but is sometimes tediously unspooled and contains some stiff performances . But if you've seen the original ¨Airport¨ based on the Arthur Hailey's novel 'the daddy of them all' , you have seen them all . The film will appeal to Lancaster-Martin fans and disaster genre enthusiasts
This ultra-slick picture contains thriller , suspense , melodrama , moderate tension and is quite entertaining although with some flaws and gaps . Filmed at the height of the disaster genre from the 7os , this entry in the spectacular series profits of a strong acting by Burt Lancaster and Dean Martin bringing life to main characters and remaining actors formed by all-star-cast . And of course appears the classic character Patroni played by usual George Kennedy who will his role in subsequent sequels . This old-fashioned motion picture is professionally directed by George Seaton ( Country girl , Miracle on 34th street ) . It's followed by ¨Airport 1975¨ by Jack Smight with Charlton Heston , Karen Black and Gloria Swanson , ¨Airport 1977¨ by Jerry Jameson with Jack Lemmon and James Stewart and ¨Airport 79 the Concorde¨ by David Lowell Rich with Alain Delon and Robert Wagner . Furthermore , ¨ Skyjacked (1972) ¨ by John Guillermin with Charlton Heston and the film was parodied heavily in Airplane! (1980) by Jim Abrahams and David Zucker . It's an inoffensive diversion but is sometimes tediously unspooled and contains some stiff performances . But if you've seen the original ¨Airport¨ based on the Arthur Hailey's novel 'the daddy of them all' , you have seen them all . The film will appeal to Lancaster-Martin fans and disaster genre enthusiasts