Early in the film, Dr. Carolyn "Carrie" Ross tells her daughter Jamie that "it's a wonderful world out there" as the mother and daughter are exploring the natural wonders of South America. Unfortunately, as they board their flight home from the Ernesto Cortissoz Airport in Barranquilla, Columbia, the plane has an infestation of mutant "bullet ants."
Fortuitously, Dr. Ross is an entomologist and a specialist in the behavior of ants. On board the plane, she links up with the air marshal Ethan Hart to do battle with the little critters. There is an odd assortment of characters onboard the plane who have different reactions to the ant attack. Behind the scenes, a nefarious government official tries his best to prevent the plane from landing on American soil due to the apparent threat posed from the insects.
The filmmakers approached this project with a tongue-in-cheek style. But they were caught in the middle between the gallows humor of the "Airplane" series and the traditional "disaster film." The worst moments were apparent in the stock footage of clusters of ants and the descent of the doctor and the air marshal into "the belly of the beast" to do battle with the Queen. The best moments were those that had levity, such as the growing romance between the doctor and the air marshal and the "over the top" moment when Dr. Moss's incinerates the plane after passenger evacuation.
One of the more interesting secondary characters was Ms. Simmons, who stood up to her supervisor and "leaked" information about the flight to news reporter Hal Roberts. There was a nice romantic moment at the debording when it appeared as though Carrie and Ethan will be developing their relationship under circumstances that are not quite so antsy.
Fortuitously, Dr. Ross is an entomologist and a specialist in the behavior of ants. On board the plane, she links up with the air marshal Ethan Hart to do battle with the little critters. There is an odd assortment of characters onboard the plane who have different reactions to the ant attack. Behind the scenes, a nefarious government official tries his best to prevent the plane from landing on American soil due to the apparent threat posed from the insects.
The filmmakers approached this project with a tongue-in-cheek style. But they were caught in the middle between the gallows humor of the "Airplane" series and the traditional "disaster film." The worst moments were apparent in the stock footage of clusters of ants and the descent of the doctor and the air marshal into "the belly of the beast" to do battle with the Queen. The best moments were those that had levity, such as the growing romance between the doctor and the air marshal and the "over the top" moment when Dr. Moss's incinerates the plane after passenger evacuation.
One of the more interesting secondary characters was Ms. Simmons, who stood up to her supervisor and "leaked" information about the flight to news reporter Hal Roberts. There was a nice romantic moment at the debording when it appeared as though Carrie and Ethan will be developing their relationship under circumstances that are not quite so antsy.