Taglines: It’s a killer ride.
Turbulence movie storyline. Ryan Weaver romances beautiful women before he kills them. Ryan is arrested, convicted, and is part of a Christmas Eve transfer of prisoners on a transcontinental 747 commercial flight. Other airlines at JFK may have holiday passengers waiting on stand-by, but this jumbo jet takes off with a lot of empty seats.
Ryan and another prisoner overpower and kill their guards. The few civilian passengers are herded into a “pantry” on the plane and are not seen again until the end of the movie. Ryan eliminates the other prisoners and all the crew members except Teri Halloran. The remainder of the movie follows a “cat-and-mouse” game between Ryan and Teri on the 747.
Turbulence is a 1997 American disaster crime thriller film directed by Robert Butler. It stars Ray Liotta, Lauren Holly, Brendan Gleeson, Heidi Kling, Rachel Ticotin, Hector Elizondo, Jeffrey DeMunn, Michael Harney, Grand L. Bush, James Macdonald and was distributed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.
About the Story
After Ryan Weaver is arrested in New York City for a murder that he says he did not commit, he must be transported to Los Angeles to face trial. He and another prisoner (Stubbs) are escorted by four US marshals on a Boeing 747-200 on a commercial flight. Even though it is Christmas Eve, the 747 is nearly empty, with only 11 people on board. The entire cabin is highly decorated with Christmas trees and other decorations.
During the 5 hour flight, Stubbs breaks free while using the bathroom and begins a shootout with the marshals, and at some point in the fight, a stray bullet fired from one of the Marshall’s sidearms punches a hole in the fuselage, instantly triggering an explosive decompression. Amidst the chaos, the Captain is fatally shot, and the First Officer is also killed when his head slams into the yoke, disengaging the autopilot in the process and a stray bullet bores a hole in a lavatory window. Weaver frees himself and attempts to save the last remaining marshal, but fails when both Stubbs shoots the marshal dead, after being shot himself.
Weaver appears to be horrified by the ordeal, increasing the passengers’ trust in him. Because of the death of the pilots, Teri Halloran, a stewardess, makes her way into the cockpit and learns she is the only one left capable of keeping the 747 from crashing. To make matters worse, the plane is heading for a Category 6 storm.
Turbulence (1997)
Directed by: Robert Butler
Starring: Ray Liotta, Lauren Holly, Brendan Gleeson, Heidi Kling, Rachel Ticotin, Hector Elizondo, Jeffrey DeMunn, Michael Harney, Grand L. Bush, James Macdonald
Screenplay by: Jonathan Brett
Production Design by: Mayling Cheng
Cinematography by: Lloyd Ahern
Film Editing by: John Duffy
Costume Design by: Robert Turturice
Set Decoration by: Donald Krafft
Art Direction by: Donald B. Woodruff
Music by: Shirley Walker
MPAA Rating: Rated R for terror, strong violence and language.
Distributed by: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Release Date: January 10, 1997
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