Die Jagd

On November 4, 1971, a man identifying himself as D.B. Cooper boarded a Northwest Airlines Portland, Oregon to Seattle, Washington flight. In flight, he threatened to detonate a bomb unless he was given $200,000 and four parachutes. His demands were met in Seattle and he directed the plane to head for Reno, Nevada. While in flight somewhere over Washington, the man bailed out of the plane with the money and the case has never been solved. This film offers a fictionalized musing on Cooper and his travails after bailing out of the plane, with Williams starring as the daring thief. Once on the ground, Williams makes his way out of the woods to reunite with his wife (Harrold) whom he left some six months earlier. Meanwhile, Duvall, an insurance investigator who was Williams's sergeant in the Army, comes to the conclusion that Williams is D.B. Cooper, and he heads to Harrold's place. Rounding out the foursome is Gleason, Williams's sleazy ex-Army buddy, who also comes to the conclusion that Williams was the hijacker and wants to get a piece of the action. This sets up a seemingly endless series of captures and escapes as Williams and Harrold attempt to elude their captors while heading for Mexico. (Verleiher-Text)