A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

It is neither dumb nor smart enough to be fun, and spends way too much time with its boring human characters.

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

Fans of the Italian film scene will no doubt be aware that despite all of the imaginative highs, a fair amount of cheap knock-offs of popular movies have been made in the land of pizza and pasta over the years. SOS CONCORDE is one of these movies, a yawningly routine variation on the '70s disaster movie staple which was released in the same year and with a similar title to a genuine American disaster film in an attempt to fool viewers into thinking the films were one and the same. Although not an entirely worthless film, this is doubly disappointing when considering the wonderful staple cast and crew behind the movie, all of whom had been involved in (and were later involved in) much better, more wonderful things. Not only did top giallo screenwriter Ernesto Gastaldi work on the script, but infamous horror director Ruggero Deodato (here called "Roger Deodata"), best known for his highly controversial film CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST, helmed the movie. Sadly the direction is weak at best, with little being made of the various suspenseful situations or action.The stalwart cast sees James Franciscus headlining as the dashing heroic lead, a vain reporter seeking out a conspiracy behind a missing Concorde and finding himself pursued by various shifty henchmen, all invariably smartly dressed, slightly sweaty, unshaven, and with sinister glasses. Although there is plenty of scope for action, only towards the end of the movie does the film deliver with an exciting shoot-out in a bank and a couple of cool stunts and car chases. Also, for the film's finale, we are offered a genuine disaster situation, with a Concorde loaded with passengers racing towards destruction unless our hero can save it. Somewhat contrivedly, the key lies in an amnesia victim's memory, a former stewardess who must try to remember the reason the first plane crashed. A once-youthful Mimsy Farmer plays the too-often hysterical stewardess but seems miscast in the part.Of course, ripping off an AIRPORT-style disaster movie wasn't enough, so in come scenes similar to those in JAWS and THE DEEP, two films which fuelled the late '70s underwater adventure genre. Lots of slow scuba-diving is involved, along with a killer shark and a wonderfully gruesome death for a diver, who is shot through the head from behind with a high-powered rifle, resulting in a huge wash of blood pouring from his shattered goggles. Sadly this is the film's only gory moment, again something of a surprise considering the director's filmography, although there is another cheesy moment in which an unlucky fisherman (played by a cameoing Dakkar from ZOMBIE FLESH EATERS) is mowed down by a speedboat. Other casting dependables include an ancient Joseph Cotton as one of the shady executives behind the Concorde, and his partner, the ever-hammy Edmund Purdom; Van Johnson as the unlikely pilot-in-peril; even Robert Kerman popping up for the finale as an air traffic controller who helps to guide the plane to safety. Yet despite the cast and scope for mucho excitement, the pacing is sluggish throughout, the scripting often uninteresting, and the special effects cheap, minimal and cheesy. Therefore only die-hard Euro buffs need to bother seeking this one out.

It's tempting to call "Concorde Affaire '79" (a.k.a. "Concorde Affair") a rip-off since its title is so close to the hilariously awful "The Concorde: Airport '79," but beyond that the only similarities the movies share is the crashing of their titular plane. They're not even in the same genre, with the Italian-made "Concorde Affaire '79 " more of an action thriller than a disaster movie.The action kicks off right away when an airline CEO (a bored Joseph Cotten) orders the sabotage a rival's Concorde test flight, causing it to crash in the Caribbean Sea, killing everyone on board. News coverage is routine, but then New York-based freelance journalist Moses Brody (James Franciscus) gets a scoop from his ex-wife—who just happens to run a restaurant in the Antilles—and though she's irritatingly vague he heads to the islands anyway. By the time he arrives his ex is dead and there are thugs trying to kill him. The plot thickens from there, with Brody discovering that there was one survivor of that Concorde crash: Jean (Mimsy Farmer), a flight attendant (because who else was going to get the pilots' coffee?) now being held captive by gangsters who are using her to blackmail Cotten—who pays them as part of "the cost of doing business." Can Brody rescue Jean and escape the gangsters in time to thwart Cotten's sabotage of another Concorde flight out of the U.K.? Though hardly a great movie, "Concorde Affaire '79" is far better than it has any right to be (and 10 times better than "The Concorde: Airport '79," as other reviewers have noted). It certainly has way more plot than expected though the storytelling is a bit rickety at times. Case in point is Brody acting surprised to discover the exact location of the Concorde wreckage as if this were some big secret. And apparently it is, as it's revealed the gangsters are actually Cotten's henchmen, sent to destroy all traces of the wreckage. Guess the FAA didn't waste too much time investigating plane crashes in the late '70s. Just as rickety is the way director Ruggero ("Cannibal Holocaust") Deodato relies on stock footage for all scenes showing the Concorde in flight. Even worse are the unconvincing miniatures used to represent the plane at the bottom of the sea. Otherwise, Deodato does a competent job in the director's chair, seldom letting the movie's pace drop below a cruising altitude. Incidentally, though helmed by a man known for including liberal amounts of gore, sex and nudity in his other movies, "Concorde Affaire '79" is strictly PG-13, with no sex, little gore and even less skin (Franciscus wearing a Speedo is as close as you'll get to nudity, though at times Farmer's billowing white blouse barely covers her breasts).Franciscus brings the swagger and rugged charisma a role such as Brody requires (think of him as a half-priced Steve McQueen, or a younger, cheaper Charlton Heston), his performance really elevating the movie's entertainment value. Cotten and Edmund Purdom do little more than wait for their paychecks. Van Johnson, another Hollywood legend, at least invests a little effort in his small part as the pilot of that second doomed Concorde flight. Farmer is under-utilized in a damsel-in-distress role, though she does get to freak out a couple times ("I… CAN'T REMEMBER!"). It also appears Farmer wasn't available for all her scenes as an obvious stand-in is used for Jean's first scenes aboard the test flight. Also look for '70s porn stars Michael Gaunt, Jake Teague and Robert Kerman (a.k.a. R. Bolla) as London air traffic controllers, speaking with dubbed English accents.

Incredibly bad, but I loved it. Particularly the quasi disco song played through the action scenes and the closing credits. And the passengers having panic attacks while the plane seemingly is crashing, Which is the most accurate part of any of these type movies. There was only a skeleton crew of big stars from Hollywood Golden Years. No Gloria Swanson here. But we do have Joseph Cotton and Van Johnson and Edmund Purdum. The big difference with this movie and the other movies of this type like all of the Airport movies is that this plane actually crashes in the beginning. Which sets off the events for the rest of the movie The plot was a little bit like the the Airport 75, also a Concord. Some corporate bigwigs know the plane is faulty but doesn't care and are after anybody who survives the accident or anybody who knows her. Opposed to a reporter having the goods on her boyfriend and he wants to target her by crashing a whole plane. Which was the plot of Airport 75. The reason for the plane crashing was sort of like one of my favorite plane disaster movie which is actually a good movie, Fate is the Hunter with Glenn Ford. Ford puts on a great performance. Like this movie the only survivor is a stewardess and she serves coffee right before the disaster. I think Fate is the Hunter is so underrated a lot of people never saw the connection between this movie and that. James Fraciscus and ex-patriot Mimsy Farmer are the two leads. He is the reporter who has the story about the faulty plane. The movie spends most of its time chasing those two around. Also there is some catchy quasi disco music they use for some chase scenes and the ending credits. I have to say I was entertained and that is what a movie is suppose to do. But it still goes on my so bad it's good list. Just think 25 years from now we will have Space Shuttle 2027 staring Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt, Denzel Washington, Beyonce as the singing nun and Sharon Stone as the 80 year old grandmother escorting her grand daughter to get a new heart.

Well, I finally got my copy of the movie today. Very old version of the movie with some mild sound and vision problems, yet this is marketed as an official release!!!! Anywhoo, as for the plot, there is an awfully large amount of stock footgae of British Airways Concorde's used. The film is not necessarily a disaster movie per say, but more of a drama. The start of the movie consists of a Concorde taking a serious nose-dive into the ocean. It looks tropical. It is made to look as though everybody on the jet has been killed upon impact. Some impressive effects (for the time - 1979!) were used and it looks quite good. After this, two fishermen pick up a girl in a life-jacket. The only survivor of the crash - Miss Jean Beneyton, a pretty young flight attendant played by Mimsy Farmer.Soon after, Jean is captured by the guys responsible for the previous Concorde's fate, helmed by Joseph Cotten. Coming to her rescue is the likable actor James Franciscus as Moses Brody, a reporter. His wife (also a reporter) found out about the Concorde crashing into the ocean and was subsequently murdered to keep the event's quiet.Finally, Jean and Moses come to know that another Concorde jet is next on the sabotage list and it is up to them to stop this next Concorde from having the same fate as the previous!!!Important Film Details:Violence: Some, mild. Bad Language: Twice, strong. Sex/Nudity: None whatsoever. Other: One mild reference to pregnancy.