The Hijacking of Flight 375

On 29 September 1988 a VASP passenger aircraft is hijacked in the air over Brazil. The hijacker is Raimundo Nonato Alves and his aim is to crash it into the presidential palace. There are more than a hundred passengers aboard and the pilot's only chance is to keep him talking. Marcus Baldini directed, from a screenplay by Lusa Silvestre and Mikael de Albuquerque. Danilo Grangheia and Jorge Paz lead the cast. The source is the real event and most of the film happens in the cockpit: the conversation between pilot and hijacker is the centre. The aircraft scenes were built with a fuselage mock-up and a motion platform; the manoeuvre sequence is the hardest technical work in it. The story goes into the political background as well: the hijacker's motive is not personal but rooted in the economic crisis of the period and his anger at the government. It screened at the Rio Film Festival, opened in Brazil in December 2023 and drew positive reviews. Who it is for: viewers who like thrillers based on real events and confined-space films. Who it is not for: anyone afraid of flying.