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Blu-ray Review: HORIZON LINE

Feb 24, 2021 Posted by in DVD/Blu-ray, Reviews | Comments

Sara (Allison Williams, Girls) has just returned to the tropical island of Mauritius for the first time in about a year in order to serve as maid of honor for her friend Pascale’s (Pearl Mackie, Doctor Who) wedding. Sara had previously spent a year on the island, where she fell in love with dive instructor Jackson (Alexander Dreymon, The Last Kingdom). However, she had a new job waiting for her in London, and so she chose to leave Jackson without saying goodbye, because she knew she’d never be able to go otherwise.

It isn’t long before Sara runs into Jackson again, and their feelings for one another are reignited. However, Jackson is still angry about how Sara had ghosted him, and doesn’t really want to talk to her—though that doesn’t stop them from spending the night together. Jackson says it was a one-time thing and still plans to avoid Sara at the wedding, but they soon find themselves thrust together once again as the only two passengers on a chartered 90-minute flight to the wedding venue. The plane is piloted by Sara’s friend Freddy Wyman (Keith David, Greenleaf), who had given her a few lessons the last time she was on the island. However, shortly into the flight, Freddy suffers a heart attack and becomes incapacitated. Now it is up to Sara to fly the plane, but with only ocean in every direction, Sara’s limited flight training, a quickly approaching storm, and a plane that is malfunctioning in every way possible, it’ll be a miracle if they make it back to land alive.

Horizon Line is one of those completely absurd and over-the-top action movies where everything that can go wrong does, and it’s so tense and entertaining to watch. At the center of this claustrophobic survival film are two people who have a complicated history with one another. They both love and can’t stand one another, but they must work together if they are going to have any chance of survival. While neither of them really knows much about planes, Sara’s two lessons a couple years ago now make her the reluctant expert who is going to have to fly and land this plane. The plane is a mechanical mess—the radio is malfunctioning, auto-pilot is broken, the gas tanks are leaking, and the gps and compass are broken—and that’s just the start of Sara and Jackson’s problems.

The film opens a bit slow, showing Sara’s final days on the island before her return a year later. But once Sara and Jackson board the plane, things really take off (no pun intended). The majority of the movie takes place with these two midflight, in their small plane, tackling one emergency after the next. But as this would-be couple puts out each new fire, the victory is short-lived because some new threat almost immediately arises. Things escalate to absurd and ridiculous levels, but in a way that makes the film a blast to watch. It was actually surprising to see that the filmmakers did have their limits as to just how ludicrous things would get, and dialed things back at times. There is one deleted scene that would have been absolutely bananas and probably one step too far, but fortunately that ended up on the cutting room floor. And there’s another moment that did make it into the film that alludes to yet another crazy impeding danger, which fortunately (or maybe unfortunately) doesn’t ultimately come to pass. This is the kind of movie that you just need to sit back and not take too seriously and you will have a great time—if you worry too much about the reality and feasibility of it all, you’re going to miss out on the fun. The film has some great, tense moments, and it really feels like these two characters are stuck mid-air in a plane that is rapidly falling apart, and are desperately trying to figure out how to keep the aircraft afloat long enough to safely land it (if they can even figure out how). The aerial shots of their predicament looking down at the ocean can be quite harrowing at times.

Universal’s Blu-ray release looks and sounds excellent. The picture remains clean and clear, with a strong level of detail throughout. The tropical island setting is beautiful, but takes on a bit of a yellowish tone in the earlier scenes. Once the couple is in the air, the picture looks fantastic, with the breathtaking blue ocean below them, and the dark, cloudy storm ahead of them. The audio track helps to bring the danger of the situation to life, from the cracking of the thunderous storm, to the sputter of the engine, and the other dangers in-between. Dialogue remains understandable, though the characters often have to yell to one another over the chaos when not wearing their headsets. The Blu-ray comes packed in a standard HD keepcase with a slipcover. It includes an 4K digital copy that can only be redeemed via Apple TV as well as a bonus Universal Rewards code that can be redeemed for points towards a free digital movie or other rewards. Both the Blu-ray and digital copy include the same bonus material—6 minutes of deleted scenes. None of these scenes were needed, and the film is probably better without them, but it was nice to see them included here.



What’s Included:

Film: (1:31:56)

    Blu-ray:

    • 1080p / Widescreen 2.39:1
    • Audio: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, English DVS (Descriptive Video Service)
    • Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish

    Digital (code may not be valid after 2/16/2026):

Extras:

  • Deleted Scenes (5:56)
    Collection of three deleted scenes. Play All, or select from:

    • Have a Drink (1:14)
      Sara pours Jackson and herself drinks in his bedroom, and they kiss.
    • It Worked (3:39)
      Sara returns to the cockpit after refilling the gas tank, and then (for some random reason) decides to have a smoke. However, the gas/rum has sprayed into the cabin and when she throws her cigarette on the ground, it ignites. Sara runs through the flames to grab a fire extinguisher just in time, but this leads Jackson to start a row about their breakup. (This scene was just a step too ridiculous, and also ruined the connection that had been forming between the characters, so I’m glad it was cut.)
    • Help Us (1:01)
      Sara hears a boat and tries to flag it down, nearly drowning Jackson in the process.

 


Final Thoughts:

My Rating
Film:
Video:
Audio:
Extras:
Recommended

Horizon Line is a thoroughly entertaining and exciting action film which gets comepletly absurd and over-the-top at times, but this is partly what makes it so enjoyable. It is like a roller-coaster ride where just as the characters put out one fire (literally) another pops up. Universal’s Blu-ray release looks and sounds great, and even includes a 4K digital copy of the film. Unfortunately the bonus material only consists of 3 deleted scenes, though it’s interesting to see one of the disasters that actually got cut from the movie. I definitely recommend checking this out if you’re looking for a fun new action/survival film.




Get it on Apple TV