LinhUp In The Air - drama comedy film review
January 18th 2010 00:29
Corporate dis-Connections by Linh
Up In The Air is the latest feature film from director Jason Reitman (Thank You For Smoking, Juno) and is a cracker of narrative wit, humour and emotional conflict. Jason also produced the film with his father Ivan Reitman (already announced as the director and producer for Ghostbusters 3) whose creative input adds to the ironies of tragedy in life that can be dealt with through comedy such as the themes of job loss and human connection in the film.
Up In The Air is based on Walter Kirn's novel of the same name and with some artistic license, Jason Reitman and his team of producers have created a film that is moving, funny and thought-provoking. The story is narrated by the protagonist Ryan Bingham, whose job is his life that completely dictates his lifestyle. Ryan Bingham is a career transition counselor whose job is to sack people face-to-face when bosses couldn't muster up the courage, will or gumption to do it themselves. He has a perpetual presence in airport bars, five-star hotels and is a recipient of enviable first class luxuries and privileges. Ryan's ultimate goal is to reach ten million frequent flyer miles (in the novel it's one million) but along the way, his personal mission is disrupted when his boss becomes impressed with a young corporate down-sizer, Natalie Keener, whose technique of sacking employees via the internet can save his company time and money. She is not the only female to enter Ryan's life. While flying across the country to fire more workers, Ryan meets his female counterpart and equal in the seductive and smart frequent flyer Alex Goran. They immediately connect over a common interest in no-strings-attached sex and first class bonuses. We start to see Ryan contemplating his life choices and considers a life with connections as an option for him, after a weekend spent romancing Alex and mentoring Natalie at his younger sister, Julie's wedding.
The cast for Up In The Air is a dreamteam lead by George Clooney as the externally charismatic but shallow character Ryan Bingham, Twilight and New Moon actress Anna Kendrick is fantastic as the wet-behind-the ears but techno-savvy Natalie and the alluring Vera Farmiga (The Departed, The Boy In The Striped Pyjamas) gives a top-notch performance as Alex.
Although the first few scenes depict Ryan Bingham firing employees played by actors, such as JK Simmons (Thank You For Smoking, Juno) and Zach Galifianakis (The Hangover, Into the Wild), the rest of the film features actual retrenched, sacked and dismissed people from Detroit and St. Louis.
Producers of the film put ads in the newspaper under the guise of seeking sacked workers for a documentary, and filmed them reacting and responding to being sacked.These people are the real faces behind the statistics of the recession and the current global financial crisis, making Up In The Air a timely reminder of the sad consequences such economic dilemmas can bring.
Up In The Air carries a metaphor throughout the film that shows in the characterisations as well as in the narrative, where firing people is akin to avoiding commitment in a relationship or family issues. George Clooney is pitch-perfect as the suave Ryan Bingham and brings humour to his character despite having a horrible job like sacking people. His lack of connections to people on an intimate level enables him to be devoid of any sympathy or empathy when firing people in person. This depicts a man who's a keen observer of people's lives rather than a participant of their lives. He uses his job to fuel a personal goal to attain contentment and is satisfied with the pampering and privileges his frequent flyer points reward him. He meets his match in two women whose own goals not only conflict or suit his own, but also sparks a connection Ryan Bingham doesn't expect or feels uncomfortable with.
Fans of the Twilight book series and films would recognise Anna Kendrick as Bella's best friend, but she plays a far more complex role in Up In The Air and Anna Kendrick shows she is a star on the rise as Natalie Keener. Her character is a typical Generation Y-er who is brought up in a world where technology makes connecting with people faster, easier and cheaper. Her ideas of firing people over the internet and ways of minimising the possible harm to career transition counselors in the process has its advantages and pitfalls. She is the new breed of corporate downsizing that allows globalisation to become localisation - you can fire someone anywhere in the world from the comfort of your desk in front of a computer monitor. Natalie soon learns that technology has its strengths in cutting people loose but not in keeping loved ones close enough. When she admits her boyfriend dumped her via text message, Ryan retorts: "Wow. That's kind of like getting fired over the Internet."
Vera Farmiga admitted to using a body double in her nude scene with George Clooney in the hotel room, but her real body of work shows she has more to her than meets the eye. Vera Farmiga exudes sensuality and confidence as the mysterious Alex whom Ryan meets at a bar. She is the female double of Ryan Bingham and understands his needs as a frequent traveller as well as how to serve it up by synchronising her flight schedules with his.
Music is a strong element in bringing people together and making connections, but rapper/singer Young MC is an unusual choice for a brief appearance in the film. His singing voice may have become slightly rusty but his energy and enthusiasm keeps everyone entertained as he belts out his hit 'Bust A Move'.
The closing credits of Up In The Air is capped off with a song by the same name which is written and sung by an unemployed musician named Kevin Renick from St Louis. He handed an unsolicited cassette tape of the song to director Jason Reitman a couple of years ago while Reitman was working on Juno and thought nothing of it for a while. Reitman decided to use the song after listening to it and discovering the lyrics carried sentiments similar to that of his film. 'Up In The Air' is an emotional and gentle pop/folk song about uncertainties and indecisions, "who the heck you are and where you're going" in life.
Up In The Air is ultimately about the human connections we have throughout life in work, family and socialising and the grief that emerges if any of these aspects of our lives are threatened either through job loss or a death of a friend/family/colleague. The film has a focus on job loss but it's an experience that can ripple through and affect other areas of our lives, as depicted through the interactions between characters in various situations. Up In The Air has already won numerous film awards including Best Actor and Actress/Supporting Actress Awards for George Clooney, Anna Kendrick and Vera Farmiga. Up In The Air is a strong Oscar contender and possible nominations for this year's Academy Awards include Best Director, Best Picture, Best Actor/Actress/Supporting Actress, Best Score, Best Song and Best Adapted Screenplay.
Director: Jason Reitman
Cast: George Clooney, Vera Farmiga, Anna Kendrick, Jason Bateman, Zach Galifianakis, JK Simmons, Amy Morton, Melanie Lynskey, Sam Elliott, Danny McBride, Chris Lowell, Marvin Young (Young MC) .
Screenplay: Jason Reitman, Sheldon Turner, Walter Kirn (novel)
Producers: Jason Reitman, Ivan Reitman, Tom Pollock, Daniel Dubiecki, Jeffrey Clifford, Ted Griffin, Michael Beugg, Joe Medjuck, Helen Estabrook, Jason Blumenfeld, Ali Bell
Music: Rolfe Kent, Matt Messina
Cinematography: Eric Steelberg
Film Editor: Dana E. Glauberman
Running Time: 1 hour 55 minutes
SACKABLE: Natalie (Anna Kendrick) learns the old-school technique of firing someone from Ryan Bingham (George Clooney) in the film Up In The Air. Image: Paramount Pictures/Dreamworks.
Up In The Air is the latest feature film from director Jason Reitman (Thank You For Smoking, Juno) and is a cracker of narrative wit, humour and emotional conflict. Jason also produced the film with his father Ivan Reitman (already announced as the director and producer for Ghostbusters 3) whose creative input adds to the ironies of tragedy in life that can be dealt with through comedy such as the themes of job loss and human connection in the film.
Up In The Air is based on Walter Kirn's novel of the same name and with some artistic license, Jason Reitman and his team of producers have created a film that is moving, funny and thought-provoking. The story is narrated by the protagonist Ryan Bingham, whose job is his life that completely dictates his lifestyle. Ryan Bingham is a career transition counselor whose job is to sack people face-to-face when bosses couldn't muster up the courage, will or gumption to do it themselves. He has a perpetual presence in airport bars, five-star hotels and is a recipient of enviable first class luxuries and privileges. Ryan's ultimate goal is to reach ten million frequent flyer miles (in the novel it's one million) but along the way, his personal mission is disrupted when his boss becomes impressed with a young corporate down-sizer, Natalie Keener, whose technique of sacking employees via the internet can save his company time and money. She is not the only female to enter Ryan's life. While flying across the country to fire more workers, Ryan meets his female counterpart and equal in the seductive and smart frequent flyer Alex Goran. They immediately connect over a common interest in no-strings-attached sex and first class bonuses. We start to see Ryan contemplating his life choices and considers a life with connections as an option for him, after a weekend spent romancing Alex and mentoring Natalie at his younger sister, Julie's wedding.
FAMILIARITY: Ryan Bingham (George Clooney) finds comfort in Alex's (Vera Farmiga) company in the film Up In The Air. Image: Paramount Pictures/Dreamworks.
The cast for Up In The Air is a dreamteam lead by George Clooney as the externally charismatic but shallow character Ryan Bingham, Twilight and New Moon actress Anna Kendrick is fantastic as the wet-behind-the ears but techno-savvy Natalie and the alluring Vera Farmiga (The Departed, The Boy In The Striped Pyjamas) gives a top-notch performance as Alex.
Although the first few scenes depict Ryan Bingham firing employees played by actors, such as JK Simmons (Thank You For Smoking, Juno) and Zach Galifianakis (The Hangover, Into the Wild), the rest of the film features actual retrenched, sacked and dismissed people from Detroit and St. Louis.
Producers of the film put ads in the newspaper under the guise of seeking sacked workers for a documentary, and filmed them reacting and responding to being sacked.These people are the real faces behind the statistics of the recession and the current global financial crisis, making Up In The Air a timely reminder of the sad consequences such economic dilemmas can bring.
FAMILY: Julie (Melanie Lynskey) and Kara (Amy Morton) convince their brother Ryan (George Clooney) to attend Julie's wedding in the film Up In The Air. Image: Paramount Pictures/Dreamworks.
Up In The Air carries a metaphor throughout the film that shows in the characterisations as well as in the narrative, where firing people is akin to avoiding commitment in a relationship or family issues. George Clooney is pitch-perfect as the suave Ryan Bingham and brings humour to his character despite having a horrible job like sacking people. His lack of connections to people on an intimate level enables him to be devoid of any sympathy or empathy when firing people in person. This depicts a man who's a keen observer of people's lives rather than a participant of their lives. He uses his job to fuel a personal goal to attain contentment and is satisfied with the pampering and privileges his frequent flyer points reward him. He meets his match in two women whose own goals not only conflict or suit his own, but also sparks a connection Ryan Bingham doesn't expect or feels uncomfortable with.
Fans of the Twilight book series and films would recognise Anna Kendrick as Bella's best friend, but she plays a far more complex role in Up In The Air and Anna Kendrick shows she is a star on the rise as Natalie Keener. Her character is a typical Generation Y-er who is brought up in a world where technology makes connecting with people faster, easier and cheaper. Her ideas of firing people over the internet and ways of minimising the possible harm to career transition counselors in the process has its advantages and pitfalls. She is the new breed of corporate downsizing that allows globalisation to become localisation - you can fire someone anywhere in the world from the comfort of your desk in front of a computer monitor. Natalie soon learns that technology has its strengths in cutting people loose but not in keeping loved ones close enough. When she admits her boyfriend dumped her via text message, Ryan retorts: "Wow. That's kind of like getting fired over the Internet."
Vera Farmiga admitted to using a body double in her nude scene with George Clooney in the hotel room, but her real body of work shows she has more to her than meets the eye. Vera Farmiga exudes sensuality and confidence as the mysterious Alex whom Ryan meets at a bar. She is the female double of Ryan Bingham and understands his needs as a frequent traveller as well as how to serve it up by synchronising her flight schedules with his.
PACKABLE: Ryan Bingham (George Clooney) can pack his entire life inside a backpack in the film Up In The Air. Image: Paramount Pictures/Dreamworks.
Music is a strong element in bringing people together and making connections, but rapper/singer Young MC is an unusual choice for a brief appearance in the film. His singing voice may have become slightly rusty but his energy and enthusiasm keeps everyone entertained as he belts out his hit 'Bust A Move'.
The closing credits of Up In The Air is capped off with a song by the same name which is written and sung by an unemployed musician named Kevin Renick from St Louis. He handed an unsolicited cassette tape of the song to director Jason Reitman a couple of years ago while Reitman was working on Juno and thought nothing of it for a while. Reitman decided to use the song after listening to it and discovering the lyrics carried sentiments similar to that of his film. 'Up In The Air' is an emotional and gentle pop/folk song about uncertainties and indecisions, "who the heck you are and where you're going" in life.
Up In The Air is ultimately about the human connections we have throughout life in work, family and socialising and the grief that emerges if any of these aspects of our lives are threatened either through job loss or a death of a friend/family/colleague. The film has a focus on job loss but it's an experience that can ripple through and affect other areas of our lives, as depicted through the interactions between characters in various situations. Up In The Air has already won numerous film awards including Best Actor and Actress/Supporting Actress Awards for George Clooney, Anna Kendrick and Vera Farmiga. Up In The Air is a strong Oscar contender and possible nominations for this year's Academy Awards include Best Director, Best Picture, Best Actor/Actress/Supporting Actress, Best Score, Best Song and Best Adapted Screenplay.
Director: Jason Reitman
Cast: George Clooney, Vera Farmiga, Anna Kendrick, Jason Bateman, Zach Galifianakis, JK Simmons, Amy Morton, Melanie Lynskey, Sam Elliott, Danny McBride, Chris Lowell, Marvin Young (Young MC) .
Screenplay: Jason Reitman, Sheldon Turner, Walter Kirn (novel)
Producers: Jason Reitman, Ivan Reitman, Tom Pollock, Daniel Dubiecki, Jeffrey Clifford, Ted Griffin, Michael Beugg, Joe Medjuck, Helen Estabrook, Jason Blumenfeld, Ali Bell
Music: Rolfe Kent, Matt Messina
Cinematography: Eric Steelberg
Film Editor: Dana E. Glauberman
Running Time: 1 hour 55 minutes
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