Air Force One is the Perfect 90s Time Capsule

And a decent movie.

Re-watching Air Force One for the first time in decades was like burning a copy of the Declaration of Independence and snorting the ashes. I was unprepared for the frenetic level of pro-America “hoo-ra” theatrics. A decade as a libertarian goober followed by another decade of disenchantment left me jaded against zealous patriotism, but this movie wants you to feel it even if it has to jab it under your fingernails.

The movie was released in 1997. Now, a lot of 90’s nostalgia is misplaced — Blockbuster and Pizza Hut weren’t that great in and of themselves — but the late 90s really were the height of America’s perceived moral authority. We were on top of the world. It was before the Monica Lewinsky scandal. Before 9/11. Before the revelations of the NSA spying on its own citizens. Before the quagmires of Iraq and Afghanistan.

This attitude infuses Air Force One. No moral ambiguity exists in this movie. The villain, delightfully played by Gary Oldman, has a few gripes that may or may not be true. But he’s a commie terrorist, so whatever he says is definitely not true.

American exceptionalism oozes so much from the screen that it almost feels like a parody of itself. But it is 100% earnest, without so much as a wink or a nod. No tongues were placed firmly in cheeks during the making of this movie.

A President for Everyone

Harrison Ford, at the height of his career, plays US President James Marshall. Other than saying threatening things to terrorists, he is a completely apolitical president. Not a Democrat. Not a Republican. Just an American dad ready to kick some terrorist butt.

Ford plays the non-offensive everyman well. He is the President of Saturday morning cartoon specials. If you’re an American, he’s on your side. That’s all you need to know.

About 5 minutes after the news breaks that Air Force One has been hijacked, a candlelight vigil appears in front of the White House. Everyone loves this President.

Unironic, Unadulterated Patriotism

This movie thinks America is the greatest nation on earth, and it assumes you think the same thing. When President Marshall has to choose which wire to cut and splice, he leaves the red, white, and blue wires alone and says, "Red, white, and blue, don't let me down."

When the American fighter jets show up, President Marshall says, “The good guys are here!” Not in a relative sense, either. He means Good with a capital “G.”

The terrorists in the movie hate us because of our freedom. They say things like "Freedom is a disease." Truly wonderful. You are meant to point and laugh and think how silly and misguided these freedom-hating idiots are.

Jerry Goldsmith composed the score, and the music is pure American victory and triumphalism. All the notes sound as if they were inscribed on the stars and stripes, and George Washington himself is playing the drums.

Soft Feminism

I don’t remember the marketing around this movie. People may have made a big deal about Glenn Close playing the Vice President of the United States. I’m sure there was chatter.

But the movie doesn’t care. It doesn’t dance around and point at the fact that Glenn Close is a woman. It’s not there to preach. This is the soft feminism of the 90s before feminism meant fighting for the rights of men in women’s bathrooms and women’s sports. Before it started to play the zero-sum game of “women good, men bad.” Before “woman” was a costume that anyone could drape over their testicles.

Feminism was still dumb, but more like an annoying little sister rather than a crazed hag throwing cat feces at anyone who walks by. It’s honestly kind of adorable.

An example. After the President is rescued, you get a scene within the situation room where everyone is celebrating. The music swells, Glenn Close relaxes with a smile on her face, and one of the generals looks at her and gives her two enthusiastic thumbs up as if she just defeated the school bully in a local karate tournament in an 80s movie.

But What About the Movie?

It still works. It’s a fun twist for a Die Hard clone. Not all of it makes sense if you think about it for more than a few seconds, but it overwhelms you with pure confidence. Air Force One is a movie made with the same swagger the United States had at the time, which is the swagger of a high school QB who just threw the winning touchdown for the state championship and knows he's about to kiss the prettiest girl in town.

It is a product of its time, and there will never be another movie like it. Even if there is a Trumpian return to an American swagger, Hollywood couldn’t pump out a fever dream so earnest and patriotic. Unless they were desperate, big-name actors would never attach their names to it. The Hollywood system itself might not survive the coming decade.

It’s also the softest, most sanitized R-rated movie you’ll ever see, suitable for most families with only minor editing.

7/10