Con Air
Movie, 1997, Named by fans, Set in Second in the trilogy
Con Air is #22 of 48 in release order and #35 of 48 in chronological order in the Spiritual Trilogies.
The story
Newly-paroled former US Army ranger Cameron Poe is headed back to his wife, but must fly home aboard a prison transport flight dubbed "Jailbird" taking the “worst of the worst” prisoners, a group described as “pure predators”, to a new super-prison. Poe faces impossible odds when the transport plane is skyjacked mid-flight by the most vicious criminals in the country led by the mastermind — genius serial killer Cyrus "The Virus" Grissom, and backed by black militant Diamond Dog and psychopath Billy Bedlam.
Con Air recap
Cameron Poe, a decorated Army Ranger, kills a man in a bar fight while defending his pregnant wife Tricia and serves eight years. Paroled, he is flown home on a prison transport plane carrying the country's worst convicts, including the mastermind Cyrus Grissom, the black militant Diamond Dog, and the quiet serial killer Garland Greene. Cyrus's men take over the plane. Poe could walk away but stays, partly to protect a guard and his diabetic cellmate Baby-O, and partly because he will not leave his daughter's birthday gift, a stuffed rabbit. On the ground, US Marshal Vince Larkin works out Poe's role, while a DEA agent pushes for a harder response. The plane lands at a desert airfield to pick up a cartel boss and change planes, Poe signals Larkin, and the authorities set up an ambush. The second of the Cage Uncaged Trilogy, it again casts Nicolas Cage as an outsider forced to save the day.
Con Air ending explained
The plane crash-lands on the Las Vegas Strip and Poe kills Cyrus, then meets his daughter. During a chase through Las Vegas, Poe and Larkin catch Cyrus and the last convicts as they flee on a fire engine. Cyrus is crushed by a pile driver. Poe meets Tricia and his daughter Casey for the first time and hands her the rabbit. Elsewhere, Garland Greene, the serial killer, sits at a casino craps table, gambling and free.
Post-credits scenes
No. There is no post-credits scene.
Where to watch Con Air
Con Air is streaming on YouTube TV and Fandango at Home Free in the US. You can rent or buy it on Amazon, Apple TV, and Google Play.
Ratings
IMDb 6.9/10, Rotten Tomatoes 59%
Where it fits
- Release order: after The Rock, before Face/Off.
- Chronological order: after The Rock, before Face/Off.
Cast
- Nicolas Cage as Cameron Poe
- John Cusack as Agent Vince Larkin
- John Malkovich as Cyrus "The Virus" Grissom
- Ving Rhames as Nathan "Diamond Dog" Jones
- Mykelti Williamson as "Baby-O" O'Dell
- Dave Chappelle as "Pinball" Parker
- Colm Meaney as Agent Duncan Malloy
- Monica Potter as Tricia Poe
- Landry Allbright as Casey Poe
- Rachel Ticotin as Guard Sally Bishop
- Steve Buscemi as Garland Greene - "The Marietta Mangler"
- Nick Chinlund as William "Billy Bedlam" Bedford
Directed by Simon West.