Movies About Flying

Updated October 1, 2024

Thinking about Movies About Flying, there is no limit to the films reporting on this idea. Here are 14 of our favorites.

Airplane! (1980)

★★★★

3.1 out of 4 stars

From Directors: Jim Abrahams, David Zucker, Jerry Zucker, starring Robert Hays, Julie Hagerty, Leslie Nielsen, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Rated PG

Airplane! (1980) is a cult classic comedic film directed by the trio of Jim Abrahams, David Zucker and Jerry Zucker. The movie follows a former World War II fighter pilot Ted Striker, played by Robert Hays, as he attempts to land an airplane with an infectious crew and passengers. Along his journey, Ted is aided by an elderly doctor, a singing nun and a number of other passengers and crew. The film is a parody of the disaster films of the 1970s, with a mix of slapstick comedy, visual gags and quotable lines. The film also stars Julie Hagerty, Leslie Nielsen, Robert Stack, Lloyd Bridges, Peter Graves and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. The film was a huge commercial success, becoming the fourth highest grossing film of 1980, and has since gained a huge cult following.

The Aviator (2004)

★★★★

3 out of 4 stars

From Martin Scorsese, starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Cate Blanchett, Kate Beckinsale, John C. Reilly
Rated PG-13

The Aviator is a biographical drama directed by Martin Scorsese and starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Cate Blanchett. The film follows the life of the pioneering aviator and film producer Howard Hughes (DiCaprio) from the late 1920s to the 1940s. Hughes was a successful business tycoon who made a fortune in the aviation, motion picture and oil industries. But his ambition and personal demons, including his increasing fear of germs, led to his eventual downfall. The film focuses on Hughes’s professional successes and personal battles, as well as his ambitious aviation projects and relationships with many powerful figures of the era, such as movie star Katharine Hepburn (Blanchett) and aviatrix Amelia Earhart.

Tora! Tora! Tora! (1970)

★★★★

3 out of 4 stars

From Directors: Richard Fleischer, Kinji Fukasaku, Toshio Masuda, Akira Kurosawa, starring Martin Balsam, Sô Yamamura, Jason Robards, Joseph Cotten
Rated G

Tora! Tora! Tora! is a 1970 war drama film that tells the story of the attack on Pearl Harbor by Japan in 1941. The film is divided into two parts, with the first part directed by Richard Fleischer, Kinji Fukasaku, and Toshio Masuda, and the second directed by Akira Kurosawa. The film follows the events that lead up to the attack, the Japanese navy's preparation for war, and the attack itself. It also provides insight into the political and cultural tensions between the United States and Japan that led to the attack. The film paints a nuanced picture of the attack and the motivations of both sides, and its depiction of the attack on Pearl Harbor is considered one of the most accurate depictions of the event.