Up in the Air
Directed by Jason Reitman
Paramount Pictures, 2009
By Sean Kelly
When your father is Ivan Reitman, the director of Ghostbusters, you’ve been handed quite a challenge to step out from his shadow. However, Jason Reitman seems to have found a niche in making some intriguing character studies. In Thank You for Smoking we were given a sympathetic portrayal of a tobacco lobbyist. In Juno we learned about the unexpected challenges of teen pregnancy. Now, with Up in the Air, we follow a guy who flies around the country and fires people on behalf of companies that are too scared to do it themselves.
Ryan Bingham (George Clooney) is completely at home with life on the road. With his schedule of firing people and making motivational speeches, he barely spends time at his own home, and is well on his way to becoming only the seventh person to reach ten million frequent flyer miles. Ryan even manages to meet a fellow frequent traveller named Alex (Vera Farmiga) with the same view on life and they quickly begin an affair.
His way of living is put in jeopardy when an eager young woman named Natalie (Anna Kendrick) proposes to change the method of termination from individual meetings to video conferences over the internet. Ryan is told by his boss (Jason Bateman) to take Natalie along on his next series of trips, so she can learn the “art” of firing people.
The topic of lay-offs is really pertinent in light of the economic recession. Most of the people seen being fired (with the exception of cameos from the likes of Zach Galifianakis and J.K. Simmons) are recently terminated individuals in real life, who take the opportunity to vent their frustrations. There is one scene in particular — the first firing using the video conferencing method — that is particularly hard to watch.
While this commentary on the economic situation dominates much of the film, the story evolves to encompass Ryan’s progressive realization that he has a very empty life. He begins to doubt the philosophy that he lives by and gives speeches on, a philosophy of life without committment to relationships or any other excess baggage. His doubts lead him to painful truths and the revelation that his only real achievement in life has been the accumulation of a lot of frequent flyer miles.
Overall, I quite enjoyed the film and I have a feeling that we’ll hear a lot about it, come award season.
George Clooney is the man, man. I don’t know the production history here, but I wouldn’t be the tiniest bit surprised to learn that this film got made because Clooney signed on. Look at Syriana, Confessions of a Dangerous Mind and Goodnight and Good Luck. These are the kind of projects people are too chicken to finance until GC shows up. I respect the guy like mad.
Did anyone catch (limited release) Men Who Stare At Goats?
From what I read, Jason Reitman wrote the film long before he made Thank You for Smoking or Juno.
Men Who Stare At Goats wasn’t a limited release. It was a wide one that did so poorly that it was pulled out of theaters really quickly. I wanted to see it, but it got horrible reviews and I missed it.
well I caught Men Who Stare at Goats and it was awesome- I had a lot of fun with it, everything in it just builds and intertwines with itself, culminating in a tight film overall and what I thought was a fantastic ending.
Definitely need to catch Up in the Air soon. Clooney is, indeed, the man.
Not sure I’d say Juno dealt with “the unexpected challenges of teen pregnancy” it’s pretty much accepted that teen pregnancy is tough. More like it’s about a girl trying to do the best thing given a really difficult set of circumstances. well, whatever I’m nitpicking I guess
Thanks Isaac…now I want to see Goats. That’s the thing with polarized reviews, they pique my curiosity. Will I agree with the critics, Isaac? Or will I agree with YOU? WELL?? WILL I??
The word “unexpected” is actually mine here and I’ll take the credit or blame. I felt it was suitable, because, while Juno faces many of the expected tribulations of pregnancy – should I keep it, what will people think, labour anxiety – she deals too with some conflicts we wouldn’t immediately expect, such as what to do when the man adopting your child has a romantic interest in you.