Matt Shea
RubySoho
Morgan Bell
Cibbuano
David O'Connell
Mountain Fog
Up in the Air
January 13th 2010 08:12
You’ve probably heard it coming down the jungle telegraph, and by this stage you might be thinking that Up in the Air is to be hand-delivered by Jesus Christ, such has been the hoopla surrounding its impending release. It is seemingly the chosen film of the year, an Oscar winner before anything’s even been nominated.
Looking at the vital stats, everything’s in order. George Clooney stars, with support provided by the coming lady of film, Vera Farmiga, and one of Hollywood’s coming filmmakers, Jason Reitman, directs from a script he co-wrote.
So, you have what looks to be a moviemaking super group to tackle this film. And interestingly enough, the final product is very much like the kind of thing turned out by a super group: Up in the Air is pristinely excellent on so many levels, yet it is not quite the soulful film you get the impression its makers want it to be.
There’s certainly no doubt it’s timely. Reitman and co-writer Sheldon Turner’s script concerning a corporate hatchet man who travels about the United States firing the employees on the behalf of their gutless employers strikes straight at the heart of the recession that currently engulfs that country.
He’s not the kind of character you’d expect to be totally sympathetic, but that’s where Hollywood’s modern day Cary Grant comes in. Under the stewardship of Clooney, professional firer Ryan Bingham becomes a charming, multi-layered entity, determined to reframe his one-on-ones with freshly disenfranchised workers as spiritual reawakenings, spinning grief into positivity and horizon-less optimism.
Bingham’s careful control of emotion in the meeting room also flows over into his personal life. His job means he’s on the road 320 days of the year, and he loves his life of plane seats and hotel rooms: it means a handy distance from such pesky things as relationships and family.
Unfortunately, Bingham is about to suffer a triple assault on his carefully controlled isolation: his sister’s imminent wedding, meaning a trip home to the family is virtually unavoidable; the arrival of Natalie Keener (Anna Kendrick), a 20-something upstart who has devised a new way of firing people via the internet, thus eliminating his firm’s need for an extensive travel budget; and the appearance at one of his hotel stopovers of Alex Goran (Farmiga), Bingham’s female equivalent in his never-ending search for frequent flyer miles – “Think of me as you, with a vagina,” she suggests helpfully.
This last encounter is the most important, as Bingham may be faced with the prospect of actually falling for somebody. Indeed, the scenes between the luscious Farmiga and charismatic Clooney are some of the best in the film: they make for a particularly sexy couple and their banter lights up the screen. The gentlemen in the audience may even have to close their eyes for fear of a coronary during one scene when Farmiga’s agreeable silhouette is briefly captured in the nude.
Up in the Air’s good moments extend to the many scenes in the middle of the film when Bingham has to show Natalie the ins and outs of his on the road work. Reitman and Turner poke fun at the age differences, with the writers almost too cruel at times to Kendrick’s Natalie, pulling apart her clichéd Gen Y ‘have it all’ ideals for the enjoyment of the audience.
Not working so well are the later scenes set at Bingham’s sister’s wedding. Things slow to a crawl in this series of sequences, although it does serve to set up the film’s kicker moment. Also not nearly as effective as the filmmakers perhaps hoped are the much talked about grabs and montages of real people who have been fired. It’s a halting move and doesn’t really fit with the emotional logic contained within the rest of the film: tellingly, a scene where Bingham and Natalie arrive to do their job at an already all-but-deserted office is far more effective.
But if it ever looks like faltering or burning out the audience’s goodwill, Up in the Air falls back on its pinch-hitting weapon: George Clooney. He obviously has bucketloads of charm, but Clooney also possesses the acting chops to imbue Bingham with a shade more depth than the character was perhaps written with, and it helps immeasurably when the hatchet man receives his emotional comeuppance towards the end of the film. Farmiga is excellent also, her natural ability linked to an onscreen presence that is totally beguiling. Kendrick is strong in the slightly smaller role of Natalie, while nobody does deadpan like Jason Bateman, who plays Bingham’s bottom line inspired boss.
As you’d expect, the technical credits are first rate. Eric Steelberg’s photography sparkles perfectly, never missing a beat with each new location, while Rick Clark’s musical supervision is typical of a Reitman effort in being absolutely spot-on, Sad Brad Smith’s Help Yourself already making waves about the blogosphere courtesy of the film’s efficient marketing campaign.
Ultimately, you have to ask yourself whether Up in the Air is worthy of the hype. The final answer is probably ‘not quite’, although for Reitman this presents a solid progression from the wishy-washy Juno and a return to the early form of Thank You for Smoking. He and Turner could have had a classic if they’d imbued Bingham with just a touch more depth, thereby upping the emotional jeopardy, and kept the comments about corporate America’s reaction to the global recession planted more firmly in the subtext. As it is, Up in the Air is simply a worthy feature film, carefully polished to shine onscreen, and proves an enjoyable way to spend two hours.
I say: A fine feature film, but not the sure-fire classic it has been made out to be.
See it for: The electricity between Clooney and Farmiga. They make for an engaging onscreen pairing.
*This image is taken from About.com
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Comment by David O'Connell
Screen Fanatic
I absolutely loved Juno but am yet to see Thankyou for Smoking so Reitman is batting 1.00 for me!!
Comment by Matt Shea
20/20 Filmsight
Comment by Luke
Old Movies
Cane Toad Warrior
Comment by Matt Shea
20/20 Filmsight
I'd go: Up in the Air > Thank You for Smoking > Juno.
For me there wasn't enough jeopardy with Juno - it was sweet, but nothing really happens until well into the second half when the couple wanting to adopt the child have their falling-out, threatening the adoption. I know I'm in the minority with my opinion on this one, though
Comment by JohnDoe
Film & TV on DVD
That being said i am a big reitman fan..Thank You For Smoking being my favourite
Comment by Matt Shea
20/20 Filmsight
Comment by Cibbuano
Hunt Famous
Orble Post of the Day
Fat Cult
Techbreak
Comment by Matt Shea
20/20 Filmsight