Up in the Air - Review

Flight of Fancy

Genre: Romantic Comedy / Drama
Release Date: February 19, 2010
Runtime: 109 min
Director: Jason Reitman
Writers: Jason Reitman, Sheldon Turner
Cast: George Clooney, Vera Farmiga, Anna Kendrick, Melanie Lynskey, Jason Bateman, Amy Morton
Rating: 4/5 *

Crackling with urbanity, Up in the Air, in the garb of a rom-com, approaches the weighty theme of recession-bred unemployment. Adapted from Walter Kirn’s novel, the film follows Ryan Bingham (George Clooney) as he sets out on cross-country expeditions, expelling employees. The journey becomes a metaphor for self-discovery and identity exploration in both his case and that of sidekick Natalie Keener. Director Jason Reitman creates a film that is extremely suave – tidy urban airports, deft conference rooms, crisp aerial overviews, well-kept hotel rooms, montage sequences of exaggerated employee reactions to their terminations.

The linear and somewhat formulaic plot – (nonchalant male versus emotionally driven female); the far-fetched frequent flyer miles target; the human versus technology debate, the derisive motivational speaker situations, etc.) is rescued by its subversion of audience expectation....




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