Movies - Executive Decision

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	Movies - Executive Decision

Executive Decision is a 1996 action film released on Friday, March 15, 1996.

Synopsis

The film opens with a raid on a Chechen mafia safehouse by an American commando team whose objective is to recover a stolen Soviet nerve agent, DZ-5. The raid is unsuccessful, and one of the commandos is killed. The commandos are led by Lieutenant Colonel Austin Travis (Steven Seagal).

We are introduced to Dr. David Grant, who is taking a flying lesson and nervous about flying on his own for the first time. Later, at the office, he is informed that the world's most feared terrorist, El Sayed Jaffa (Andreas Katsulas), has been taken into custody.

Oceanic Airlines Flight 343 takes off from Athens. Soon after, the 747 is hijacked by Jaffa's number two man, Nagi Hassan, and a number of Jaffa's men. In London, a suicide bomber blows up a London restaurant, and the American embassy is notified by one of Jaffa's men using a tape recorder playing into a public telephone. The bombing is meant to underscore Hassan's seriousness.

Back in Washington, we see Dr. Grant as a bit of a ladies man as he attempts to charm a woman at a party with a pair of hockey tickets. His efforts are thwarted, however, as he is interrupted by news of the hijacking.

On the plane, an air marshal hides his gun in an ankle holster. Flight attendant Jean (Halle Berry) notices the words "ARMED AIR MARSHAL" on the passenger manifest, and hides it from Hassan in order to keep him from finding out about the air marshal.

Dr. Grant heads over to the Pentagon, where he and several Pentagon officials, including Colonel Travis, listen to Nagi Hassan demand the release of Jaffa. Dr. Grant, however, does not believe Hassan wants Jaffa released. He believes that Hassan actually arranged for Jaffa's capture, that the hijacked plane is carrying a bomb loaded with DZ-5, and that Hassan wants to detonate the bomb over U.S. airspace, killing 40 million citizens.

Back on the plane, Hassan addresses a man revealed to be US Senator Mavros, a potential presidential candidate.

At the Pentagon, a plan is worked out that will involve a mid-air transfer on a commando team onto the hijacked airliner using an experimental aircraft. The plan is approved, and Colonel Travis assembles his commando team at Andrews Air Force Base. They board with Dr. Grant and engineer Dennis Cahill (Oliver Platt). Much to Cahill's dismay, Travis insists that the engineer come with them when they board the airliner.

The boarding process is complicated by the fact that the pilots and terrorists on the plane are unaware of the presence of the commandos. When the 747 attempts to gain altitude, the commando's aircraft is forced to break away. Most of the team makes it over, but Sergeant "Cappy" Matheny is seriously injured and Colonel Travis is caught between the two planes and killed, but not before he manages to close the plane's hatch. The commando team quickly set up in the 747's lower deck.

Because of the botched transfer, military command on the ground does not know whether or not the commandos made it on board. A carrier group has been ordered to intercept the plane and shoot it down over the Atlantic if necessary, killing over 400 passengers on board.

Hassan forces the copilot down into the lower deck to investigate a malfunction caused by the transfer. While down there, he sees the commandos and almost gives their presence away, but recovers and tells Hassan it is merely a fried circuit. In the lower deck, Cahill and Grant reveal that if they fail in their mission before the plane enters US airspace in 3 hours and 50 minutes, the Pentagon will order the plane shot down. With limited options, the commandos begin to search for the supposed DZ-5 bomb. In the cockpit, the copilot quietly mentions to the captain that he saw American soldiers in the lower deck.

As the team discreetly moves through the structure of the plane, setting up cameras that peer into the cabin and searching for the bomb, Senator Mavros' aide encourages the Senator to negotiate with the terrorists, as it will greatly enhance his public image if he is successful. Suddenly, Jean spots Dr. Grant in the elevator of the plane as he is moving between decks. He signals for her to keep quiet. Hassan approaches and grows suspcious, but finds nothing. Jean manages to steal a page from a book in Hassan's coat, which diagrams the blast radius of the bomb over Washington D.C. Senator Mavros, meanwhile, approaches Hassan in an attempt to open a dialogue with him. The team finds the bomb, and Dr. Grant comments that there is "enough nerve agent to wipe out half the eastern seaboard."

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