An Evening of Airport Movies at the Egyptian Theatre

I enjoyed a wonderful double bill last night at the Egyptian Theatre, comprised of the first two films in the AIRPORT franchise, AIRPORT (1970) and AIRPORT 1975 (1974).

I originally reviewed AIRPORT in June 2010 and AIRPORT 1975 in May 2010.

The movies were even more fun on a big screen; I felt AIRPORT in particular came off better seen in a theater than on TV. The huge widescreen shots of the control tower with snow falling outside were fantastic, and when the plane piloted by Barry Nelson and Dean Martin first emerged from a bank of clouds, the audience applauded. The booming Alfred Newman score was also shown off to great effect.

It was very enjoyable seeing the films with an enthusiastic audience. The crowd thinned out for AIRPORT 1975, which didn't start until around 10:15, but everyone who stayed seemed to appreciate its absurd goofiness, with Stewardess Nancy (Karen Black) piloting a crippled jetliner until Charlton Heston can be lowered from a helicopter (!) through the jet's broken window to take over for the emergency landing.

I highly recommend that AIRPORT fans see these films on a big screen if the opportunity presents itself! I think I smiled for most of the evening. Pure movie fun.

Prior to the film Mark Carlson signed his book FLYING ON FILM: A CENTURY OF AVIATION IN THE MOVIES, 1912-2012. Given how much I enjoy aviation films, I'm looking forward to reading the book.

Carlson also introduced the films, including mentioning the fun trivia that the pilots of AIRPORT 1975, Efrem Zimbalist Jr. and Dana Andrews, essentially flipped the roles they had played 15 years earlier in THE CROWDED SKY (1960).

I've had a lot of wonderful experiences at the movies recently, with more to come in the near future!