Sometimes the $10 million verison of a film does it better than the $90 million one.

“Fight or Flight” follows an on-the-run man (Josh Hartnett) who is tasked with identifying and arresting a wanted terrorist aboard an international commercial flight. Charithra Chandran, Marko Zaror, and Katee Sackhoff also star as James Madigan makes his directorial debut.

In 2022, the film “Bullet Train” came out as one of the first post-COVID blockbusters. I thought it was fine, has its moments but also a lot of ego and flaws, but in the last three years it’s developed a bit of a following. “Fight or Flight” is more or less the same movie but in the air (should’ve pitched the idea to the studio as part of a cinematic universe, could’ve called it “Bullet Plane”). It’s clearly a film made on a (relatively) small budget for an action movie, but thanks to some creativity and a dedicated Josh Hartnett, a lot of “Fight or Flight” works.

I like Josh Hartnett, and am glad to be living during the Hartnaissance. I thought he was the sneaky MVP of “Oppenheimer” and was great in last year’s “Trap,” and it’s nice to see him having a career resurgence after a lull in the 2010s. As Lucas, he is a bit manic and paranoid, which lends itself to the film’s inherently unserious tone and approach despite its subject matter. He’s got an underdog charm to him, and Charithra Chandran also has some good moments as a flight attendant that aids him.

Some of the supporting characters can be a bit goofy, as films like this tend to attract larger-than-life performances. It isn’t too often a distraction, though there are a few times that a scream or random break-out into song feels out of place.

I liked the over-the-top, uber-bloody violence of the film. It isn’t torture porn like “Saw,” but it’s the kind of action film that will have a simple paper cut result in a gallon of blood for comedic effect. Hartnett did his own stunts on the film, and I thought he held his own well against clearly-trained stunt performers.

“Fight or Flight” is a smaller-scale action film with a fun central performance from Josh Hartnett. It’ll be easy to compare it to other similar movies or knock it’s dollar-spreading approach, but if you just take it for what it is, a goofy single-location action movie where Josh Hartnett has died blonde hair and wears a pink milkshake shirt, then I think there’s plenty of fun to be had.

Critics Rating: 7/10