Flight Risk is a tense action thriller set against the stunning but treacherous backdrop of the Alaskan wilderness. The film centers on Deputy U.S. Marshal Madolyn Harris (Michelle Dockery), who is tasked with transporting Winston (Topher Grace), an accountant turned informant on the run from the Moretti crime family. As they board a small plane piloted by the seemingly affable Daryl Booth (Mark Wahlberg), their journey quickly becomes a fight for survival when it’s revealed that the pilot is actually a hitman sent by Moretti to ensure Winston never testifies.
Stranded and isolated, Madolyn must confront her own traumatic past as she improvises to protect Winston and herself. The situation escalates when they learn there’s a leak within the U.S. Marshals connected to the crime family, making them targets not just from the skies but also from within law enforcement. As Madolyn wrestles to keep control of the plane and maintain hope for rescue, the tension on board builds relentlessly, with shifting alliances and personal demons coming to the fore.
The film’s climax is a nonstop barrage of confrontations; Madolyn fends off both the lethal hitman and manipulations from her superiors. As the plane careens toward a perilous landing amid running low on fuel, Madolyn’s resourcefulness and courage are put to the ultimate test. In the final moments, she not only manages to land the plane but thwarts another assassination attempt on Winston, who is rushed to safety. “Flight Risk” delivers high-altitude suspense with psychological drama, underscored by revelations of betrayal and redemption.
It is Mark Wahlberg as you’ve never seen him before. At first it was almost hilarious watching Daryl and his quirky banter with his two passengers, but the tone quickly turned dark as Daryl reveals his true identity and evil intent. It was unnerving to say the least watching Mark Wahlberg portraying a very dark evil side. Stepping well outside his usual heroic or wholesome roles, Wahlberg embraces the character’s duplicitous nature, portraying Daryl as both a seemingly folksy, affable pilot and a ruthless, unhinged hitman. Wahlberg made a visible physical transformation by shaving his head for the role, adding a raw and unsettling authenticity that heightened the menace of his character. As the film progresses and his character’s evil intentions come to light, Wahlberg shifts gears into an overtly psychopathic demeanor—snorting, snarling, and radiating danger.
I liked it, it was fascinating to watch Mark Wahlberg in this role. It is a good little ride, grab some popcorn and give it a go….
Michelle Dockery as Madolyn and Mark Wahlberg as Daryl in Flight Risk. Photo Credit: Courtesy of LionsgateMichelle Dockery as Madolyn in Flight Risk. Photo Credit: Courtesy of LionsgateTopher Grace as Winston in Flight Risk. Photo Credit: Courtesy of LionsgateFlight Risk Movie Poster Courtesy of Lionsgate
She Rides Shotgun – A Novel by Jordan Harper – March 13, 2018.
A propulsive, gritty novel about a girl marked for death who must fight and steal to stay alive, learning from the most frightening man she knows—her father.
Eleven-year-old Polly McClusky is shy, too old for the teddy bear she carries with her everywhere, when she is unexpectedly reunited with her father, Nate, fresh out of jail and driving a stolen car. He takes her from the front of her school into a world of robbery, violence, and the constant threat of death. And he does it to save her life.
Nate made dangerous enemies in prison—a gang called Aryan Steel has put out a bounty on his head, counting on its members on the outside to finish him off. They’ve already murdered his ex-wife, Polly’s mother. And Polly is their next target.
Nate and Polly’s lives soon become a series of narrow misses, of evading the bad guys and the police, of sleepless nights in motels. Out on the lam, Polly is forced to grow up early: with barely any time to mourn her mother, she must learn how to take a punch and pull off a drug-house heist. She finds herself transforming from a shy little girl into a true fighter. Nate, in turn, learns what it’s like to love fiercely and unconditionally—a love he’s never quite felt before. But can their powerful bond transcend the dangerous existence he’s carved out for them? Will they ever be able to live an honest life, free of fear?
She Rides Shotgun is a gripping and emotionally wrenching novel that upends even our most long-held expectations about heroes, villains, and victims. Nate takes Polly to save her life, but in the end it may very well be Polly who saves him.
THE MOVIE:
She Rides Shotgun follows Nate (Taron Egerton), a recently released ex-con who suddenly shows up at his 11-year-old daughter Polly’s (Ana Sophia Heger) school and drags her into a car without much explanation. Polly barely knows her father and does not trust him, but she quickly learns that a violent white-supremacist prison gang has marked Nate’s entire family for death, and the safest place for her might actually be on the run with this stranger she is supposed to call “Dad.”
As they hit the road across New Mexico, Nate starts teaching Polly how to disappear: new hair, new clothes, fake names, and a crash course in how not to look scared. They bounce between cheap motels, roadside diners, and sketchy contacts from Nate’s old criminal life, always trying to stay one step ahead of the gang members hunting them. At first Polly feels like cargo, but the more danger they face, the more Nate involves her in the plan, whether she is ready or not.
Nate takes Polly to his brother Nick’s ex-girlfriend’s house looking for help and a place to lay low for a while. Charlotte (Odessa A’zion) is a tough, street-smart woman who gives Polly a different view of Nate and the choices he has made. Polly starts to pick up survival skills of her own, from handling herself in sketchy places to swinging a baseball bat as more than just a toy, which both scares her and makes her feel powerful. The father and daughter who started as strangers slowly develop a rough, awkward bond, built on shared danger and dark jokes.
As the gang closes in and law enforcement also starts paying attention, the walls tighten around Nate and Polly, forcing them into riskier moves and more direct confrontations. Nate becomes increasingly desperate to wipe out the threat before it reaches Polly, while Polly struggles with how much violence she is willing to accept from the man who is finally acting like a father. The story builds toward a final standoff that tests how far both of them will go to protect each other.
As I watched Ana Sophia Heger’s Polly in She Rides Shotgun, I was genuinely impressed by how authentic and emotionally nuanced her performance was. She never tries to play Polly as unrealistically tough, but instead shows a kid who’s scared, confused, and searching for safety, all in a world that keeps demanding she grow up too fast. The subtle changes in her expressions, whether she’s nervously watching her dad dye her hair or making difficult decisions under stress, made every scene feel real, and at times, heartbreaking.
What really resonated was how Ana, despite her age, matches and sometimes elevates the energy Taron Egerton brings to the screen. Their chemistry gives the whole father-daughter dynamic a bruised authenticity that made me care about their connection. There’s a moment near the end when Polly’s silent reaction communicates more than any line of dialogue could. For me, Ana Sophia Heger absolutely anchors the emotional tone of the film, her vulnerability, grit, and growth make Polly’s journey unforgettable and truly worth watching.
Ana Sophia Heger, at the age of 12, is an actress to watch, inviting comparisons to a young Tatum O’Neal while carving out something more fragile and contemporary. Ana gives a performance that feels like a spiritual descendant of Tatum in Paper Moon, but filtered through a 2020s sensibility. Less wisecracking prodigy, more vulnerable kid learning, far too early, what violence and loyalty really cost. She brings genuine depth and subtlety to her role far beyond her years, and given her passion, discipline, and ability to handle emotionally complex material, Ana Sophia Heger is poised to become a truly exceptional force in film as she grows.
You know what Bobby would say……
Highly Recommended!
Turn off the lights and devices,
Make some popcorn,
Grab a beverage,
and Stream This Movie
on PRIME!
Taron Egerton and Ana Sophia Heger in SHE RIDES SHOTGUN. Photo Credit: Courtesy of LionsgateTaron Egerton and Ana Sophia Heger in SHE RIDES SHOTGUN. Photo Credit: Courtesy of Lionsgate
During the last desperate days of WWII, a solitary prospector (Jorma Tommila) crosses paths with Nazis on a scorched earth retreat in northern Finland. When the Nazis steal his gold, they quickly discover that they have just tangled with no ordinary miner.
While there is no direct translation for the Finnish word SISU, this legendary ex-commando will embody what SISU means: A white knuckled form of courage and unimaginable determination in the face of overwhelming odds. And no matter what the Nazis throw at him, the one man death squad will go to outrageous lengths to get his gold back – even if it means killing every last Nazi in his path.
SISU THE MOVIE:
Starts with the description:
SISU
is a Finnish word that cannot be translated.
It means a white-knuckled form of courage
and unimaginable determination.
Sisu manifests itself when all hope is lost.
1944
Then we see the lone prospector and his dog panning for gold in a stream. Then:
CHAPTER 1: THE GOLD
comes on the screen and the prospector finds a sliver of gold in the creek. He starts to dig around the stream looking for the vein of gold and indeed finds the vein of gold. He digs it up and fills his saddle bags with the gold. Then he loads up on his horse and heads out on the long road to town followed by his dog. On the way he encounters The Nazis……
CHAPTER 2: THE NAZIS
And a Minefield that the Nazis planted as they were leaving Finland……..
CHAPTER 3: MINEFIELD
And we find out who the prospector really is and why he is ………..
CHAPTER 4: THE LEGEND
Scorched Earth is the policy the Nazis had on their retreat out of Finland, it is also now the prospectors policy………..
CHAPTER 5: SCORCHED EARTH
And along with some new friends, they want to………
CHAPTER 6: KILL ‘EM ALL
THE REVIEW:
The Scenery, filmography and special effects:
The scenery of untouched Finland unravaged by Nazi hands….Beautiful. As the Nazis start to enter the frame and the land they have touched, the filmography echoes that. Colors fade into the grey of war and the evilness of the Nazi war machine. The special effects were awesome. Explosions, horrific graphic violence, lots of blood and body parts, and fog…lots of fog.
The Legend:
The prospector character was loosely based on a WWII Finnish sniper who reportedly killed over 500 Nazis. He is played by Finnish actor Jorma Tomilla, a mild mannered actor in real life. He transformed himself into a complete bad-ass in this movie. I say well done to that transformation and great job acting as The Legend. He never says a word until the very last scene in the movie and conveys so much without uttering a single word throughout the rest of the movie. Interestingly enough Jorma’s son is also an actor and played one of the Nazis in the movie.
The Dog:
The prospector’s dog is a Bedlington Terrier which looks slightly like a wild poodle. The director had his mind set on a more vicious dog breed for the movie but when he saw Jorma Tomilla’s dog he decided to use him instead. You can see the bond the two have in real life coming through in the scenes in the movie. Personally I think the Dog was the second best actor in the film, right after Jorma.
My final words(Promise):
It reminded me of INGLORIUS BASTARDS, that movie was also laid out in Chapters. And obviously because of WWII and The Nazis but also because of the over the top violence. It was almost as if parts of it were a horror/slasher movie. Make no mistake, there is lots of violence and it is horrific, but in a horror movie type of way. Even though this is a war movie I think it borders on some good old fashioned horror, kind of like Strange Darlingor Ready Or Not. It reminds me of Strange Darling in how the movie is laid out in chapters also.
I loved this movie, I loved everything about it. The story, the legend, the dog, the women. I am a fan and am ready for SISU 2. Bring it on……..
Mimosa Willamo as Aino in SISU. Copyright Freezing Point Oy. Photo Credit: Antii Rastivo Courtesy of LionsgateJorma Tommila as Aatami Korpi in SISU. Credit: Copyright Freezing Point Oy, photographer Antti RastivoSISU Movie Poster Courtesy of Lionsgate
STREAMING MOVIE NIGHT 