The 12 Best Movies to Watch on a Plane
I don’t know what summer has in store for you the next few months, but I’ll be binging Love Island and checking airline prices to Mallorca daily while I await my next vacation. Which also means I’m mentally preparing to sit on a plane for several hours and hopefully picking the right movie to entertain myself while I’m at 30,000 feet.
What constitutes a good movie to watch while being uncomfortably squeezed like a sardine in a metal tin flying in the air? Well, that can be tricky. An airplane is not the place to watch Scream or Lion, and I am of the opinion that you should never, ever, watch a natural-disaster movie while flying (and definitely not Snakes on a Plane). You don’t want a film that will make you think too hard or that will make you laugh too much so as to disturb your seatmates. As for those tears, it might not be advisable to sob next to a stranger. The two genres that I find prove to mostly be a safe bet include romantic comedies and action films. But in case you need some more direction, here are the 12 best movies to watch on that teeny-tiny screen while you’re up in the air.
Anyone But You
The latest plane movie to take over United, Delta, and beyond. While we’ll be drooling over Glen Powell this summer thanks to Hit Man and Twisters, this 2023 rom-com puts his and Sydney Sweeney’s chemistry on full display. Loosely based on Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing, the film aims to be like the rom-coms from the early 2000s: cheesy lines, predictable plot points, and the perfect mix of romance and cringe to balance it all out. It’ll make you smile, but not laugh out loud, and that’s important on a flight.
Crazy Rich Asians
This is the plane movie of the past five years. I don’t know what’s in this film, but I bet at least one person per flight is watching it. Similar to Anyone But You, the film follows our protagonist as she travels abroad for a wedding, but this time, the couple is happily together and she must meet and deal with her hot boyfriend’s extremely rich side of the family. It’s lots of bling, some adventure, and a good dose of Michelle Yeoh.
Top Gun and Top Gun: Maverick
Most people would argue that you should avoid any sort of plane movie during a flight, but after recently watching Top Gun: Maverick while in the sky, I’d argue that this film might be the sole exception. (Also, hello again, Glen Powell.) Both the sequel and the original have enough action to distract you, and even though you’ll be thinking about planes, Tom Cruise will be doing many wild tricks on a fighter jet, making you super thankful for your cushiony seat on a passenger plane and the fact that you’ll never be going upside down (at least not on purpose).
Mamma Mia
According to staff writer Danielle Cohen, “Plane movies should involve an element of lifestyle porn to distract you from the ickiness of your current environs. With Mamma Mia, that escape can be a fictional Greek island where the most dramatic wedding of all time is unfolding to the soothing bops of ABBA. It’s familiar, it’s iconic, it’s Meryl Streep at her most glamorously frazzled. If you are looking for something equally catchy but more unhinged, opt for Mamma Mia: Here We Go Again — or, for red-eyes, do a double feature.”
Bring It On
Give me an H-O-T-T-O … just kidding. But if you’re obsessed with spelling out “Hot to Go,” this might be the right movie to distract you. The 2000 sports comedy centers around the Rancho Carne Toros, a high-school cheerleading team, led by newly minted captain Torrance (Kirsten Dunst), who learns that her team’s routines have all been stolen from another squad in East Compton. The rivalry between the two squads, led by Dunst and Gabrielle Union, and the typical highs and lows of teen movies, lead to an iconic film that will help you pass the time.
Little Women
This movie is probably about as mushy as you’ll want to get. While both the 1994 and 2019 film versions are wonderful, the latter, directed by Greta Gerwig, always manages to leave me better than it found me. Even if spending time with the March girls gets me emotional, it’s a feel-good movie through and through. Starring Saoirse Ronan, Florence Pugh, Emma Watson, Timothée Chalamet, and Laura Dern, the all-star cast is reason enough to tune in.
Bride Wars
What happens when two lifelong best friends book their wedding for the same date at the same venue? Chaos. It’s delicious to watch, per culture writer Cat Zhang’s recommendation. Icons Anne Hathaway and Kate Hudson delve full force into bridezilla mode, and unless you’re on your way to a wedding where the bride has been a little on edge, this movie will entertain you and make you count your lucky stars that you’re not in their position.
The Departed
Senior social editor Sasha Mutchnik swears by this film for a long-haul flight: “It’s really a great anywhere movie, but perfect for in-flight viewing. It’s fairly long, so it eats up a solid chunk of time, and it’s engaging all the way through. Pacing is important in a plane movie, and The Departed delivers exquisitely on that front. No lulls, unmatched quotable humor, tons of action, emotional depth, and a banging Dropkick Murphys soundtrack. Kind of violent, so I guess don’t watch it if you’re sitting next to a kid. But otherwise, it’s perfect.”
Mission: Impossible
Another action film that will keep you preoccupied, according to Cohen, is any of the Mission: Impossible movies. “They’re kind of funny but crucially not laugh-out-loud, and just the right level of self-aware about their own ridiculousness. There are seven of these movies, so one of them is bound to be on your flight’s lineup. You don’t really need to follow their plots to enjoy what’s going on, so you can fall asleep somewhere around hour one and drop back in whenever. Also, watching Tom Cruise dangle by one hand from the Burj Khalifa will make you feel a lot less freaked out about a little turbulence.”
Knives Out
If you’re going to watch a murder mystery, it can’t be too scary, so you can’t go wrong with Knives Out. The 2019 film centers around the murder of crime novelist Harlan Thrombey, where everyone in his dysfunctional family is a suspect. Daniel Craig plays charming southern detective Benoit Blanc, who manages to get through multiple plot twists and find the real killer.
Bonus points: It has a sequel that you can watch on longer flights, where Blanc and a whole new cast of characters have a showdown on a billionaire’s private island, and a third installment being filmed now where Josh O’Connor plays another hot priest.
Edge of Tomorrow
Writer Emily Gould shared that she recently learned her husband watches this movie every time it’s available on a plane. “I get it. It’s a great movie, very satisfying, and untaxing for the brain,” she says. Does this just mean if a movie has Tom Cruise in it, you should watch it on an airplane? That seems to be the case, and it’s a good rule of thumb while you’re browsing for options.
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