Pop Culture Happy Hour - Best Movies To Watch On An Airplane

Episode Date: December 19, 2024

Watching a movie on a plane can be a great way to pass the time if you're traveling for the holidays – particularly if you're going a long way. But picking the right movie can be very tricky. Today, we're debating the best movies to watch on an airplane, and making recommendations, including Moana, Jackie Brown, The Holdovers, and The Lion in Winter. Follow Pop Culture Happy Hour on Letterboxd at letterboxd.com/nprpopculture.See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.NPR Privacy Policy

There are lots of ways to watch a movie in a beautiful theater, on your couch, even on your phone. But maybe one of the trickiest places is in the sky. So many of us are traveling for one holiday or another, and that means watching movies on the plane. But what movie should you watch? As always, we are here to help. I'm Stephen Thompson. And I'm Linda Holmes, and today on NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour, we're debating what's the best movie to watch on an airplane. Joining us today are our co-hosts Aisha Harris. Hello, Aisha.

On a plane, on a plane, on a beautiful plane, I'm here. And noted chaos agent in episodes such as this, Glen Weldon, hello Glenn. Oh, no, I got my trade table upright and locked right now. Hey. Excellent, excellent. Well, we're here because watching a movie on a plane can be a great way to make the time pass as you float over the mountains and the sea, particularly if you're going a long way. But picking the movie you want to watch can be very challenging for a bunch of reasons. So what's the best movie to watch on an airplane?

We've all brought our picks. Stephen, kick us off. Well, Linda, I have the definitive correct answer based on the following criteria. One, the film should be bright and colorful. You don't want a lot of nighttime scenes. You want to be able to see the action. Exactly. Two, the dialogue should be crisp and easy to understand.

No Tom Hardy mumblecore. Nothing that requires subtitles in any way, shape, or form because you're already watching on a tiny little screen. No nudity or violence. Nothing that will traumatize any strangers who might be peaking over your shoulder. Not so wrenching that I will sob all over the place, like the time I watched Lion on a plane and created a scene. Okay. And it needs to really truly no point. Pun intended, make the time fly by.

The correct answer is 2016's Disney film Moana. Okay. So Moana, to me, is like the perfect airplane Disney movie. It's not a movie that will necessarily make me like blubber all over the place, but I do find it moving. It's a journey that I find engrossing. It's a film that I really enjoy start to finish. It's got laughs and warmth, but also for me,

it is a very easy rewatch. It makes the time move very quickly. The dialogue is extremely easy to understand. It's very brightly lit. Even the undersea moments of that film are pretty brightly lit. Shiny. And shiny, literally shiny. And so this film kind of checks every box of what I'm looking for on a plane while avoiding everything that disqualifies a movie from being a great airplane watch.

Huh. I have definitely watched Milan on a plane. I think that's a good pick, Stephen, and on brand for you. Stephen, is this because the rock makes you feel safe? Yes. I'm sitting in an exit row, but the rock is between me and the window, so I know that he will actually do any necessary heavy lifting if necessary. But, Stephen, he would never sit in a middle row or even the window seat.

He's too big. He would need to sit in your aisle seat. So that's one. I would feel like he'd want to kind of squish himself up against the window because the bice are going to knock over any carts that are kind of passing through. Yeah, that's true. It's true. Stephen, I don't know about this because this is a gorgeous movie that you're going to shrink down onto a wee little screen.

I think you might be missing a lot of the, like, some of that movie is vistas and spectacle and big musical numbers. I'm not saying this is the only way you should watch Moana. Yeah, but I'm saying that's what disqualifies it as the perfect airplane. Okay. Okay, okay. But there is a maximalism to the beauty of this film that I think is designed to be viewed on a wide variety of screens. Of course you're going to miss some of the nuances when it is shrunk down, but you're not going to miss all of them. And also, this does not have to be the only time in your life that you watch the movie Moana, Glenn.

I don't want to come off like a Martin Scorsese film bro here, but there's something about this notion of watching a beautiful film like that on a teeny tiny, tiny little screen that. I think there should be an asterisk here. If you're going to watch it on a plane, you either need to watch it on a giant iPad or your laptop. So at least the screen is a decent-ish side. And it's not just the little tiny screen that's on the back seat, like the headrest of the seat in front of you. For me, honestly, though, the most important thing, even more important than visually, as somebody with a certain amount of hearing loss and a massive amount of tinnitus, the fact that anything you're listening to through headphones on a plane is competing with a steady. loud, whushing noise, it's very, very, very important to me that a movie have extremely bold sound design. And that was one reason I went immediately to animation and sort of felt like

animation, every voice that is recorded is recorded on the absolute top-notch sound equipment to capture just like every flavor of a person's voice. You're not losing any of the dialogue. And to me, that is, frankly, more important than, like, oh, man, I missed how beautifully animated that water is. So the audio component is equally as important as the visual component to me. You're making a case that a musical like that would cut through the noise. Yes. Assuming you have good headphones. And I do.

I travel with my work headphones for this exact reason. I think the other option in terms of making the most of the visuals is just to lean forward until your nose is, like, on the screen. And then it's like you're having a big screen. experience. That is a great pick to kick us off. I appreciate it. Stephen and I, next time I fly, maybe I'll watch Moana. Okay. Aisha, I assume you did not pick Moana, despite being our Disney correspondent. So what did you pick? Again, I contain multitudes. Now, Stephen, there were a few requirements that you have that I agree with. There's one that I'm surprised you didn't mention, but this movie, whatever you choose, cannot contain any airplane crashes. No disasters like that.

Oh, yeah. That's another good one. Absolutely must. Airplanes don't exist in the world of Milan. Yes, the one exception might be airplane, the spoof film. But that's not my pick because it's fun, but it's a little too short. And that is my big thing, is the movie needs to be, and I'm going to go against every fiber of my normal being here, it needs to be two hours plus long because, like, unless you're doing a very short, like, hour-long flight

where you're up in the air for maybe 45 minutes before, you know, they're like, all right, you got to put everything away. this needs to have your attention for at least two hours, preferably more. I'm also considering the fact that I hate flying. I fly pretty regularly, but I hate it. I hate everything about it. It's not natural. We shouldn't be this high in the air. And I also think that ideally when you are watching something on a plane, it has to be something

you've seen before. So this is very specific to me. Perhaps you have not seen this movie, but it needs to be something that I find comfort in. I want to watch a good heist movie. movie when I am on a plane. Think about it. They're fun. They're relatively formulaic. They require just the right amount of engagement without being too heavy and too overbearing that's not super serious. And there are lots of, you know, heist movies I could go with. I could go with Rafi Feefei. I could go with Oceans 11 or Oceans 12. I decide to go with Quentin Tarantino's

Jackie Brown. Now, yes, yes. Now, is there a little bit of nudity? A little bit. Whatever. The next to you can abvert their eyes. It's fine. Or not. It's not excessive. And this is, of course, Tarantino's movie, which is based on the Elmore Leonard novel, Rum Punch. It stars the fabulous, incomparable Pam Greer as the title character, who is, wait for it, a flight attendant.

And her side hustle is smuggling money for the gun trafficker Ordell Robbie, who's played by Sam Jackson. And so it turns into a high. She's caught by the feds. Ordel tries to kill her before she squeals, but she manages to negotiate with him by hatching this plan to trick the police while getting him the rest of his money.

And this is where we can play one of the great scenes from this film. Now, sooner or later, they're going to get around to offering me a plea deal, and you know that. That's why you came here to kill me. Come over and kill you. Oh, no, okay.

It's okay. Now, I forgive you. Now, let's say, if I tell on you, I walk. If I don't, I go to jail. Uh-huh. I want 100. $100,000 in an escrow account in my name. Now, give me a little round of applause, please, for finding about 20 seconds of audio that had no cursing.

I was waiting for it and really shocked when it didn't come. Yeah, I was waiting for the beep. And that's the thing, right? Like, we all know about Tarantino. He is a colorful screenwriter. He loves profanity. But you know what? You're on a plane.

No one's going to hear it except for you. It doesn't matter. And it's San Jackson. So it's like doubly profane. And on top of it, of course, there is a copious amount of use of the N-word, which was very controversial at the time. You know, Spike Lee, a lot of other people actually were not very happy about it. I can look past that because we've got Pam Greer at her best, finally getting a meaty role playing this iconic character who is also somewhat inspired by her earlier iconic characters from the 1970s. I think that this is just a great ensemble cast movie.

It's a good-looking movie. Oh, Robert Forster. Robert Forster. Robert Forster. Yes. As the bail bondsman who has a little thing with Jackie Brown. Robert De Niro, Michael Keaton, Bridget Fonda. This cast is stacked. And what I like about this film is that Tarantino knows how to make a good-looking movie,

but it doesn't necessarily require a big screen in the same way. And that's why I love this movie and think it's perfect because it is about two and a half hours long, a little bit less. It's just enough time to like maybe have an hour left of the flight. you can sleep or you can watch a TV show instead to top off the rest of your flight. And it's fun. It's a great movie to just get engrossed and get lost in. And if you've seen it many times, you can just be like, this is my comfort watch.

And that is why I chose Jackie Brown, Quentin Tarantino, as an ideal plane watch. Never would have thought of it, but it's a great pick. No argument for me. This tips my hand. But yes, I think a film that is grounded in dialogue is a great pick. I think that's a great Tarantino pick because it's not. not particularly bloody. There is a sex scene.

And so I'm just going to say the flight attendant will come over during that sex scene to ask your chicken or beef. And they will think you're a purve because even if there's only one sex scene, that's what it's going to happen on a plane. They'll find it. Well, I think that's a great pick. Aisha, Jackie Brown, thank you very much. My pick, first of all, I want to say that my standards for this pick were very similar to the ones that you all have talked about. My movie is about two hours and 15 minutes. So that's a good link.

Yes, yes. I agree that you don't want something that is super high on colorful visuals. I think dialogue is a good focus. I think personalities are a good focus. I do agree that you do not want significant sex scenes or violence. And I will say that on one occasion, when I was flying, and I do not remember exactly what I was watching, it may have been something on HBO. and I was watching something and it got to a pretty intense sex scene. And just as I thought, I probably need to fast forward or redirect my screen,

I swear this is true. From behind me, a nun walked down the aisle. And I thought, you know, I'm sure the nun is not shocked. That's what you get for watching Caligula on a plane. So I didn't want it to be anything that was. was going to attract attention from nuns or others. So I went with The Holdovers, which is a 2023 film starring Paul Gimati, Devine Joy Randolph and Dominic Sessa.

Gimati plays a teacher who winds up being responsible over Christmas break for a kind of an errant student with nowhere to go at a boarding school. They were supposed to be looking after me. I told you to stop. You said you lost your hands of me. No, I met it metaphorically. Of course you met it metaphorically. What were you going to do? Actually, I would wash your hands.

First of all, this is just a movie that I love. I think it should be a movie that you love. I think it should be a movie that's great to watch. I think it should be a movie that if you've already seen it, you may gain more from it the second or third time that you see it. And I think the subtlety of some of these performances is like that. Also, a lot of this movie is faces. It is people and faces and expressive acting.

It is not a lot of vistas. there are some very nice, to the degree that it is about the look of the place, the whole point is that it's kind of a pretty but flat vista. And I think it can still be effective on a smaller screen. Now, we'll say, the biggest question about watching a movie on a plane is just what is your whole approach going to be? Because as we said, you've got to have your own headphones. I suggest for a plane over-ear headphones. With the best noise canceling you can afford, if possible, because there's just nothing going on in a plane that you need to hear in the world around you.

Nothing. That none wouldn't have sneaked up on you. That's true. That's true. I'm also going to argue, you know, if you leave yourself to the vagaries of what movies are being shown by the airline, somehow every time I have done that, I've been like, well, maybe I'll check out the movies and see what they have. It winds up being a lineup of movies that I have already decided not to watch. And you need to download your movie before you leave.

This is an important part of travel planning. Also, all three of our picks so far, phenomenal music. Yes, yes. That film has a wonderful soundtrack. Yeah, that's a great pick, Linda. Also, I am not one prone to crying, but, like, that is the type of movie where it's, like, you could get in your feelings very easily by the end of it. For sure. We should talk about this idea of crying on airplanes, this notion that you cry more easily on airplanes when you're watching a film.

Did they poll exclusively babies? It's not exclusive to babies, although that certainly is certainly true. People say it's the oxygen mixture. People say it's the pressure in the cabin. I think if it is true, and I'm not sure it is, it's that you are completely, you know, you're unmoored. You're not connected to the earth. Think about it. Even in the tallest skyscraper, you're still grounded, right?

You're still rooted to the ground. But in the air, you're isolated. I think you're where you're not supposed to be to your point, Aisha, which means that you're anxious, which means that your emotions are closer to the surface. That's my theory anyway. See, this is why calming substances are my friends when I am flying. Benadryl, hello. Glenn Weldon, I cannot wait to hear what you have chosen. My gut reaction was to pick something that, because I am first and last day, pretentious snot. My gut reaction was to pick something that would impress the other people because you are watching this movie. in a public space. So people walking by

Myro and seeing, oh, he's watching Ingmar Bergman's Wild Strawberries or last year at Marion Boutre, is that the bitter tears of Petrovon Kant? Who are you flying with? That would... That's the thing. This is only if you're flying in like into telly ride or can, right? Nobody else is going to know these films. Is Grises

on your plane, Glenn? I don't know, you really lose some of the colors of the umbrellas of Sherbourne. Exactly. That's not. That's why I didn't choose any of them. To me, it's always dudes who are reading like business books. So they're probably not going to care. I do think action movies lose their impact. I do think anything, as we talked about, anything, epic or sweeping, is not going to land

you. And from a practical perspective, we've touched on this, but you can't have a lot of scenes taking place at night because the light in the cabin is going to reflect on your screen. And all you're going to see is your big, dumb reflection looking back at yourself from a very unflattering angle, which leaves out, you know, a lot of horror. I think, you know, and Aisha and Linda, we have the same instinct here, is to get out of spectacle. No big effects, no big sound design, no big backgrounds.

You just drill down onto the most human level, which is people talking. So any film that takes place entirely in like alternating medium shots over each other's shoulder, the women, his girl Friday, bringing up baby, the Philadelphia story, all about Eve. Okay, wait, I'm setting up my prediction in my head. And I'm going to see if it's right. Yeah, same. Yeah, I've already got mine. Okay. Here's a good shorthand.

If a film has ever been dinged for being quote unquote stagey, then it's a great candidate. Bonus points, if it's actually adapted from a play. The most airtight, the one you can bounce a quarter off of. This is the pick. This is The Lion in Winter. Oh, my goodness. I was close. 1968.

Peter O'Toole, Catherine Hepburn, an infantile Tony Hopkins in his first major role. A fetal. Timothy Dalton in his very first role. Bonus, it's a Christmas movie. So watch it when you're going home for Christmas. It is Christmas Eve in 1183. King Henry II has summoned his family to join him at his castle in France,

or as they say in the film, France. And he also included his estranged wife, Eleanor of Aquitaine, who is played by Catherine Hepburn, whom he keeps imprisoned in England for the rest of the year. And then they proceed to argue over who should inherit the throne. That's it. That's the movie. The perfect alchemical mixed platonic ideal of matching dialogue with performance that a lot of movies never attain. Here is an example. This is Catherine Hepburn, who won an Oscar for this, as Eleanor recalling how she used to enjoy traveling with her first husband. I even made poor Louis take me on crusade. How's that for blasphemy? I dressed my maids as Amazon's and rode bare-breasted halfway to Damascus. Louis had a seizure and I damn near died of Windburn. But the troops were dazzled. The troops.

The troops were dazzled. So you got Catherine Hepburn doing that, which is only she can do. She won best actors for it. It also won best score, Stephen, and best adapted screenplay. And of course, you got Peter O.T. Toole doing his thing where he speaks very intently. Tewel. Whispering something very intently and then he starts shouting at the top of his voice into piping

tenor. And then he goes back to speaking very intently. I mean, Glenn, one thing you have in this movie are stagy voices. Exactly. People who enunciate very clearly for people like me who cannot hear dialogue very well. Very clearly. This movie is funny. It's smart.

It looks great but not so great that you feel like you're going to miss something, which is important to me. And, you know, it goes back to my first thing because people who walk by you on the way to the bathroom are going to think you got good taste because you're the only one on the plane not watching the office again, right? That's how I felt when I was on the last time I flew when I was watching the women. Oh, I named it. George Cuckers, the women. I did think you were going to say either cat on a hot tin roof or the long hot summer, both of which could also kind of stand in in a way. Talky, stagey, southern staging.

but stagie, you know? I thought you were going to say my dinner with Andre. I was going to say my dinner with Andre. That was my guest, too. Oh, interesting. And I do want to say, I think this is a great pick, and I think you're going in a very good direction here. You also could, along these same lines, pick something like before sunrise, you know, things that really are about the quality of conversation. I think this is a really good pick.

I have not seen this movie. I'm pretty sure we were shown this movie in high school. And I could not have told you anything about it except robes. All I remembered about this movie is robes. I could have told you the time period was like a long time ago. And it's one of those things where people are walking around a royal space in robes. But it makes me think about going and watching it because I do like Catherine Hepburn talking about bare-breasted maidens and all that stuff. Dazzled troops.

That sounds like my cup of tea. I very much like Glenn's pick the lion in winter. So we have run the gamut here of a lot of good movies. to watch on airplanes. We want to know what you think is the best movie to watch on a plane. Find us at Facebook.com slash PCHHH

that brings us to the end of our show. Aisha Harris, Glenn Weldon, Stephen Thompson. Thanks so much for being here. Never fly away from me again. Oh, thank you. Thank you, Linda. Thank you, buddy.

This episode is produced by Liz Metzker and Mike Kassif and edited by Jessica Reedy. Research was performed by Barclay Walsh and Nicolette Khan. And Hello Come In provides our theme music. Thank you for listening to Pop Culture Happy Hour from NPR. I'm Linda Holmes and we'll see you all tomorrow.