Light-Hearted Comedies

AIRPLANE (1980)
Starring: Robert Hays, Julie Hagerty, Leslie Nielsen
Rating: 7.7/10 Stars on iMDB
Our Take: No good list of aviation-themed entertainment would be complete without Airplane. This film is an absolute classic and provides some pretty epic laughs.

VIEW FROM THE TOP (2003)
Starring: Gwyneth Paltrow, Christina Applegate, Mark Ruffalo, Candice Bergen, Rob Lowe, Mike Myers, Kelly Preston
Rating: 5.3/10 Stars on iMDB
Our Take: It’s the story of a small-town girl who dreams of becoming a flight attendant. Didn’t we all have that dream at some point? This is a pretty standard rom-com overall but it still remains a cult favorite among flight attendants. If you find the flight attendant life even remotely fascinating, you’ll probably get a kick out of this. Plus, who cares if Gwyneth Paltrow says she regrets doing this movie? We still love it.

Action-Packed Thrillers

RED EYE (2005)
Starring: Rachel McAdams, Cillian Murphy
Rating: 6.4/10 Stars on iMDB
Our Take: This is not your typical Wes Craven film, but Red Eye is a fun and clever thriller that keeps you entertained. Plus, the cast is great! We feel like Rachel McAdams can do no wrong.

FLIGHTPLAN (2005)
Starring: Jodie Foster, Peter Sarsgaard
Rating: 6.3/10 Stars on iMDB
Our Take: Jodie Foster is fantastic in this psychological thriller about a woman who loses her daughter on a long flight. The plot is a little far-fetched, but the action makes it a fun watch!

Critically-Acclaimed

SULLY (2016)
Starring: Tom Hanks, Aaron Eckhart, Laura Linney
Rating: 7.4/10 Stars on iMDB
Our Take: This is a fantastic movie about “The Miracle on the Hudson,” one of the most incredible incidents in aviation history. Tom Hanks does a stellar job portraying Sully. Our one and only issue with this film is that we wish the flight attendants had been portrayed a bit more realistically. We know the movie is titled Sully, but someone had to help get those people out.

CATCH ME IF YOU CAN (2002)
Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Hanks, Christopher Walken
Rating: 8.1 Stars on iMDB
Our Take: It’s everything we love about life in aviation – minus the whole crime thing, of course! This film is full of fun, adventure, and a little bit of drama. Plus, it includes homage to Pan Am, and who doesn’t love reminiscing about the golden age of air travel?

Feel-Good Films

UP IN THE AIR (2009)
Starring: George Clooney, Vera Farmiga, Anna Kendrick
Rating: 7.4/10 Stars on iMDB
Our Take: This story focuses more on the downsides of constantly being on the go, and yet still somehow gives us that warm fuzzy feeling about things like airport security. Weird, right? Our favorite George Clooney quote from the movie sums it up: “All the things you probably hate about traveling – the recycled air, the artificial lighting, the digital juice dispensers, the cheap sushi – are warm reminders that I’m home.”

THE TERMINAL (2004)
Starring: Tom Hanks, Catherine Zeta-Jones
Rating: 7.4/10 Stars on iMDB
Our Take: If you’ve ever sat reserve at the airport, then this movie will probably give you a little bit of PTSD more than anything else. This film made us feel grateful for the fact that we don’t actually live at the airport – despite the fact that we feel like we do. Also, should Tom Hanks be in every aviation-themed movie? Let’s discuss.

Not for the Faint-of-Heart

FLIGHT (2012)
Starring: Denzel Washington, Nadine Velazquez, Don Cheadle
Rating: 7.3/10 Stars on iMDB
Our Take: If you’re a nervous flyer, you might want to sit this one out. While the scenario is far-fetched, it is still highly entertaining and Denzel Washington is amazing as always.

NON-STOP (2014)
Starring: Liam Neeson, Julianne Moore, Michelle Dockery
Rating: 6.9/10 Stars on iMDB
Our Take: As you’re most likely already aware, hijackings are pretty unlikely at 35,000 feet – but they’re still possible! While the everyday traveler may not enjoy a movie like this as much as a flight attendant will, movies like this remind us why we spend so much time on safety and security during flight attendant training. It’s why flight attendants have to stay vigilant on every flight – even the seemingly boring ones. Plus, we love seeing Michelle Dockery and Lupita Nyong’o as flight attendants!

Heroic Tales

NEERJA (2016)
Starring: Sonam Kapoor, Shabana Azmi, Yogendra Tiku 
Rating: 7.7/10 Stars on iMDB
Our Take: If you are a flight attendant and have not seen this, stop what you’re doing right now and go watch it. Neerja Bhanot is a true hero and this powerful movie does a fantastic job of telling her story. Whether you’re in the aviation industry or not, this is a must-see film.

7500 (2019)
Starring: Joseph Gordon-Levitt
Rating: 6.3/10 Stars on iMDB
Our Take: We’ll start by saying that this movie is heavy. The film happens in real-time and it is intense. To be honest, we couldn’t wait for this film to end but also could not stop watching. Joseph Gordon-Levitt delivers an incredible performance.

Binge-Worthy TV Shows

PAN AM (2011-2012)
Starring: Christina Ricci, Margot Robbie
Rating: 7.10/10 Stars on iMDB
Our Take: This extremely underrated show has an all-star cast and is full of excitement and drama. With all that being said, it was the nostalgia of it all that sucked us into the show. Doesn’t everyone want white linen tablecloths in First Class and a week-long Europe trip?

THE FLIGHT ATTENDANT (2020)
Starring: Kaley Cuoco, Michiel Huisman, Zosia Mamet
Rating: 7.1/10 Stars on iMDB
Our Take: Many of our fellow flight attendant friends don’t seem to like the show because they felt Cassie was a hot mess… to which we say: you know you’ve flown with this person! Maybe the people we fly with aren’t quite as disastrous as Cassie, but they definitely bring their fair share of issues to the galley. This is a fun whodunnit comedy/drama and we can’t wait for Season 2!