Movie · 1977 · Action, Drama, Thriller · 1h 54m · PG · English
Curator score: 1.2/10 (22.2K ratings)
Flight 23 has crashed in the Bermuda Triangle... passengers still alive, trapped underwater...
Overview
Flight 23 has crashed in the Bermuda Triangle after a hijacking gone wrong. Now the surviving passengers must brave panic, slow leaks, oxygen depletion, and more while attempting a daring plan, all while 200 feet underwater.
Ratings
Curator score: 1.2/10
IMDb: 5.8/10
Letterboxd: 2.89/5
Rotten Tomatoes: 50%
Metacritic: 36
TMDB: 5.6/10
Director
Jerry Jameson
Production
Universal Pictures, Jennings Lang Productions
Cast
Jack Lemmon, Lee Grant, Brenda Vaccaro, Joseph Cotten, Olivia de Havilland, Darren McGavin, Christopher Lee, George Kennedy, James Stewart, Maidie Norman, Pamela Bellwood, Anthony Battaglia, Kathleen Quinlan, Arlene Golonka, Elizabeth Cheshire, M. Emmet Walsh, Gil Gerard, James Booth, George Furth, Peter Fox
Where to watch
Netflix, Netflix Standard with Ads
Curator Review
Verdict
A sturdy, old-school disaster thriller that works better as a pressure-cooker survival story than as a big spectacle. The underwater setting, practical tension, and committed cast give it enough momentum to entertain, even if the pacing is uneven and the setup feels familiar.
Best for
70s disaster-movie fans
viewers who like survival tension over action
fans of ensemble cast melodramas
people curious about early underwater thriller effects
Skip if
you want fast pacing
you need strong character depth
you’re tired of 70s disaster formulas
you prefer modern realism or high-stakes intensity
Overview
Airport '77 is one of those late-70s disaster pictures that knows exactly what it is: a star-packed, high-concept survival machine. The gimmick is irresistible — a luxury jet sitting on the ocean floor, its passengers trapped inside while air, time, and nerves run out. That premise gives the film a cleaner, more claustrophobic shape than many of its peers, and the underwater imagery does a lot of the heavy lifting.
Worth noting
What keeps it from being a full-throttle recommendation is the familiar franchise machinery. The characters are broadly sketched, the middle stretches can feel sluggish, and the movie often leans more on procedural waiting than escalating drama. Still, the cast brings a surprising amount of dignity to the material, especially Jack Lemmon, whose calm professionalism helps sell the absurdity.
Bottom line
If you enjoy 70s studio spectacle, survival setups, and disaster movies that play like elaborate stress tests, this is an easy watch. If you want the genre at its most thrilling or emotionally involving, it’s more of a competent detour than a must-see.
Top Letterboxd reviews
Matt J. (3.5★) · 180 likes
Christopher Lee: vampire, evil wizard, heavy metal musician, cult leader, and experienced scuba diver. Is there anything the man couldn't do?
Rafael "Mister Movie" Jovine (3★) · 139 likes
A pretty solid film. In fact, it's perhaps the least disastrous disaster film I've watched. In fact, I'd classify it as a thriller or survival drama more than anything else. Lemon, in particular, shines among the star-studded cast. That sequence with the woman attempting to leap out of the plane's door and being pummeled unconscious was probably what inspired the iconic slapstick scene in Airplane!
All in all, a nice film with some suprisingly great cinematography and a story that entertains enough.
TODAY SCHEDULEVengeanceAirport 77The BanishingPetit Maman
David Whitman (3.5★) · 116 likes
A group of art thieves hijack a new plane by putting all the passengers to sleep with gas. They accidentally crash the plane into the ocean where it immediately sinks. Miraculously, the plane doesn’t implode (they are in a pretty shallow area) and the passengers are stuck looking out their windows into the murky ocean. Meanwhile, water is leaking into the plane.
We know the formula by now for this third entry in the Airplane franchise: throw a bunch of… more
Wood (2★) · 98 likes
This is interesting only to be reminded how dope 70's jumbo jets were. Lots of space to walk around in, entertainment deck, pilots left the door open so you could chat, and you could smoke. Then some pesky ART THIEVES knock you into the Bermuda triangle how ANNOYING.
Daniel (3★) · 98 likes
"You'll see the airplane when it arrives. I think you'll agree that we brought these guests down in style."
Philip Stevens (James Stewart), wealthy owner of the Stevens Corporation, is having a large group of guests flown in to his Palm Beach, Florida estate with a privately owned, luxurious Boeing 747, captained by Don Gallagher (Jack Lemmon). However, a group of thieves has also found its way on board, and they're after priceless works of art which are transported with… more