Fight or Flight Review: Hartnett's Brawly Fun vs. Thin Plot

This fight or flight review starts with a simple pitch: one plane, one mercenary and a whole lot of people with bad intentions. James Madigan's action-comedy plays like a pulpy bar brawl at 35,000 feet. It is loud, silly and often fun, even when the script runs low on fuel.

Fight or Flight Review: The Story So Far (No Spoilers)

The plot is easy to follow. Lucas Reyes (Josh Hartnett) is a mercenary who takes a job to find a target aboard a passenger plane and keep her safe. The research notes sum up the hook neatly: once they are on board, both of them are surrounded by people trying to kill them.

The tagline, "This flight goes nonstop to hell," tells you the tone. Brooks McLaren and D.J. Cotrona wrote the script, and they treat the setup as a launchpad for set pieces rather than a puzzle. If you want a tight thriller with deep twists, look elsewhere. If you want a fast, bruising ride, you are in the right seat.

What Works in Fight or Flight

The best thing here is the energy. Madigan keeps the film at 102 minutes, and it rarely lingers. The cramped setting forces the fights into aisles, galleys and seat rows, and that gives each scrap a scrappy, improvised feel.

• Comic timing: The humour is dry and often violent, a good fit for an R-rated action-comedy.

• Tight space: Fighting around seats and overhead bins keeps the staging fresh.

• Pace: The movie knows its premise is slight and moves on quickly.

If you enjoy other crowd-pleasing entries in our action movie reviews, this will feel like familiar comfort food with a sharper sense of humour.

Fight or Flight Cast and Performances

The Fight or Flight cast is the film's strongest card. Josh Hartnett plays Lucas Reyes as a tired, sarcastic fighter who is better at throwing punches than at making peace with his past. He is clearly having fun, and his deadpan delivery sells the jokes.

Charithra Chandran plays Isha, the target at the centre of the chaos. She holds her own against Hartnett and brings a lively, quick-witted presence. Katee Sackhoff appears as Katherine Brunt, and Marko Zaror, JuJu Chan and Julian Kostov round out the lineup as Cayenne, Master Lian and Aaron Hunter. Zaror and Chan bring welcome physical presence to the action.

The chemistry between the two leads keeps the story moving when the script leans on formula. For background on the production and full credits, see the Fight or Flight page on IMDb.

Where Fight or Flight Stumbles

The film is more a collection of scenes than a story. The characters are sketched in broad strokes, and the villains are mostly there to be hit. Once you see the formula, there are few surprises.

The comedy and the action also fight each other at times. A joke can undercut a moment that wants to be tense, and a tense beat can freeze a joke. The tight setting also begins to feel repetitive near the middle, when similar brawls follow one another.

A Familiar Tone

Movies like this live or die on style, and this one leans on the usual quips and stylised violence. That works, but it will not feel new if you have seen a lot of modern action-comedies. Fans who like a mix of laughs and thrills may also want to browse our comedy movie reviews.

Is Fight or Flight Worth Watching?

Yes, Fight or Flight is worth watching if you want a breezy, violent, funny B-movie with a charismatic lead. It is not a classic, and its audience score of 6.3/10 from 438 votes on TMDB matches that middling-but-pleasant feel.

The film delivers what its title promises: a hit-or-run attitude, a goofy sense of danger and a short runtime. It was released on 3 April 2025 in the United States, and it is rated R for its violence and language. Treat it as a popcorn night out, not as a must-see event.

If you like the premise, our thriller movie reviews list other tense, contained stories worth checking out.

Who Will Enjoy Fight or Flight

• Fans of Josh Hartnett who want to see him in a livelier, funnier role.

• Viewers who like R-rated action-comedies with a one-location hook.

• Anyone after a short, undemanding movie night with plenty of fights.