Left Behind

Yet another version of Jerry B. Jenkins's and Tim LaHaye's bestselling debut novel in the popular titular Christian-themed series, Left Behind revolves around what happens to a small group of people after the Rapture. Chloe (Cassi Thomson) has returned home from college for the weekend to celebrate the birthday of her pilot dad, Rayford Steele (Nicolas Cage). But Steele receives a last-minute assignment to take an overnight flight from New York to London—or, at least that's what he tells his wife (Lea Thompson), who has become a Bible-toting, fundamentalist Christian. Steele's real plans include a tryst with a sexy blonde flight attendant (Nicky Whelan). And then pandemonium hits with the Rapture, fulfilling a Biblical prophecy that the righteous will ascend into Heaven, while unbelievers are left behind. Veteran-stuntman-turned-director Vic Armstrong hasn't a clue how to sustain tension between the airplane in the skies and the chaos on Earth. Instead of solid pacing, he employs clichéd scares, such as loud noises and characters/objects jumping out onscreen for no apparent reason. The film also suffers from an overabundance of expository dialogue in which almost every character explains his or her background, although oddly the script never delves into the obvious psychological tension that would arise in a marriage when one spouse undergoes a major religious conversion. Not recommended. (S. Granger)