Movie

Strategic Command (1997)

Royal Oaks Entertainment produced several low-budget action flicks in the 1990s. They always open with stock intro music and usually have Michael Dudikoff in the lead role. In this one, he’s a biologist named Rick Harding who conveniently has a military / martial arts background. Helpful when boarding a hijacked plane mid-air with a special forces unit as backup. Rick’s mission: defuse a nerve toxin bomb before the terrorists use it to attack the US.

If this sounds familiar, it’s because the plot is identical to Executive Decision (1996). In that, Kurt Russell is the scientist (no martial arts) and Steven Seagal’s commando is a decoy hero who dies halfway through. The heroes approach the hijacked commercial airliner in a stealth plane and use a connecting tube-like thing to access the cargo hatch. The sequence midway through Strategic Command is a carbon copy.

For added tension, the main character’s wife is on board the plane, which feels convenient and contrived. But since the inspired clone (or knockoff, if you’re feeling less generous) has a female hijacker – and a nasty one – in Mira, it’s worth checking out for villainess fans.

Villainess

Mira (Gina Mari)

Before the mid-air antics, the terrorists raid a chemical storage facility and steal a fictional nerve agent called Bromex. It’s obvious these guys are bad because they wear black commando outfits, and the lone female, Mira, has a sleeveless top to emphasise her sexiness. She sure looks like a sadistic henchwoman, a role confirmed when the leader Gruber (any relation to Hans?) produces a human eyeball. Mira smiles in delight as they bypass a retina scanner.

Some toxin is accidentally released, and a disposable guy is sealed in an airtight chamber. His vomit is supposed to be stomach acid, but resembles milkshake. The terrorists make their escape, and there’s a decently staged shootout with casualties on both sides. And a surprise early fight between Harding and Gruber, but the hero can’t win yet, otherwise there would be no movie.

After the villains hijack a 747 with the Vice President on board, Mira acts the tough girl and headbutts the uncooperative VP. She’s eager to execute some hostages purely for fun. This is one psycho lady, who gets very excited when Gruber murders a press liaison to convince the authorities he’s serious.

Mira’s best moment comes when the Secret Service attempts to retake the plane. A female agent holds the villainess hostage, then a traitor turns the tables. After the would-be heroine surrenders, Gruber orders her execution, and Mira is happy to oblige. The smiling villainess’ reaction – where she pants and draws back her hair – is downright evil.

After the heroes sneak on board Executive Decision style, Mira investigates the cargo hold. Harding escapes the henchwoman on this occasion, but a confrontation is coming. The showdown on the doomed airliner is weak, with shaky-cam fight scenes. It’s Harding against Gruber and Mira versus the traitor (who’s developed a conscience and joined the good guys).

The unlikely hero overpowers Mira and forces her against a fuselage door. Then he opens it, depressurising the cabin and sacrificing his own life to defeat the villainess. There’s a scene a little later where Harding kills Gruber with the nerve agent. The sadistic Mira deserved an equally nasty fate, but went out with a faint scream.

Honourable Mentions: Hijackers

Passenger 57 (1992) – Sabrina Ritchie (Elizabeth Hurley)

British actors playing villains is nothing new in Hollywood. This film gives us two: Bruce Payne’s psycho hijacker and Liz Hurley as his accomplice Sabrina Ritchie. She seems to be an innocent flight attendant, but that accent is a giveaway.

Sabrina reveals her treachery when she offers a meal to two unsuspecting FBI agents and serves up bullets from a silenced pistol. Too bad that’s her only decent moment. After that, Sabrina has occasional dialogue and holds a crew member hostage. The hero knocks her out with one punch, and she’s arrested when the plane lands. Anyone hoping for a decent climax will be very disappointed.

Hijacked (2017) – Sadie (Greer Grammer)

Also known as Altitude, this movie features a villainess with a wonderful introduction. Sadie – yet another fake flight attendant – is part of a criminal gang hunting a former associate. There had to be a simpler solution than hijacking a passenger plane, but it suffices as an excuse plot. The action heroine is hostage negotiator Gretchen Blair (Denise Richards, cast against type).

After Sadie breaks a jokey attendant’s neck to show off her martial arts prowess, she tricks her way into the cockpit. There, she injects the pilot with poison and stabs his co-pilot with her heeled shoe. An awesome double kill, but the film doesn’t build on this impressive opening.

The fight scenes are poorly choreographed and edited, and the two “confrontations” between Gretchen and Sadie don’t amount to much. Eventually, the villainess is sucked out of the plane. In hijack movies, you can guarantee at least one baddie will die this way. But it’s predictable and unconvincing.

Hijacked (2012) – Liesel (Ashley Cusato)

Yes, there are two generic B-movies with the same title. This one has more star power, with Randy Couture as CIA agent Paul Ross, who teams up with Dominic Purcell’s bodyguard to foil a hijacker extortion plot. The target is a private jet owned by a wealthy businessman, and – to make things personal – Ross’ girlfriend Olivia is on board. This appears to be a plot contrivance, but is later revealed to be a setup.

The villains are bland, leaving it to the henchwoman Liesel to offer the best action. Though her role is mostly limited to sinister facial expressions and the occasional tough-girl speech, she gets two great kills. Liesel is sadistic and trigger-happy. That goes for all the hijackers, since the businessman wants the hostages murdered as part of his diabolical scheme.

The opening party scene has a British spy played by Vinnie Jones (in a rare good guy role) don a tuxedo and do a not-so-great 007 impression as he flirts with a sexy woman. The awkward romance gets cut short by a phone call, then the MI6 agent and Ross later discover the female tied up during an armed raid. A trained operative should spot the warning signs, but he’s stupidly caught off guard. The villainess seems to enjoy her deception before she blows his brains out.

After the mercenaries board the jet with help from an inside woman (who’s nowhere near as smart as she thinks), Liesel enters a private cabin through a hatch. She surprises a couple in the middle of passionate sex, takes a moment to enjoy the view, and finishes them with a silenced pistol. Her best scene in the movie, and while it’s possible Liesel gets an off-screen kill later on, the shooter isn’t confirmed.

After a string of “act tough but don’t do a lot” scenes, Liesel engages the heroes in combat. Sadly, the henchwoman doesn’t have the fighting skills you’d expect, and is easily captured. For the last act, Liesel is a prisoner until she’s released to help defuse a bomb. She has no idea how to disarm it, but escapes and aims her gun at the careless Ross. Then the inevitable happens: Olivia shows up to put a bullet in the villainess’ back.