The Reel Review
A TSA agent working at LAX on Christmas Eve faces a moral dilemma when terrorists threaten to kill his pregnant girlfriend also working at the airport unless he lets a mysterious carry-on bag through his security checkpoint. Taron Egerton, Jason Bateman and Danielle Deadwyler star in this crime thriller.
Director Jaume Collet-Serra (Black Adam, The Commuter, The Shallows) seemed set on making an ode to the 1988 classic Die Hard. Only this is no Die Hard. It’s a hot stinkin’ mess. The convoluted, what-would-you-do story from T.J. Fixman (Ratchet & Clank) is ridiculously unbelievable and neither Egerton nor Bateman are even the slightest bit convincing as the respective TSA agent and terrorist mastermind.
The only good part of this moronic film is Deadwyler as the detective hot on the trail of the terrorists. The highlight – a completely insane car action sequence set to “Last Christmas” that is both terrifying and hilarious. But Deadwyler aside, Carry-on is a very feeble, way too long waste of two hours.
REEL FACTS
• Golden Globe winning Welsh actor Taron Egerton (Rocketman), is an ambassador for the Motor Neurone Disease Association, after losing a grandmother to the rare nervous system disease.
• Atlanta-born Danielle Deadwyler received a BAFTA nomination for her portrayal of Mamie Till in the 2022 civil rights drama Till.
• Although set at Los Angeles International Airport, Carry-on was filmed in New Orleans.
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