So getting back to an Oscar movie that I didn’t get around to before this year’s awards, I decided to pick up Robert Zemeckis’ (Back to the Future) drama that was nominated for Best Original Screenplay and Best Actor. Flight is a story about a man that has a lot of vices, but is still a pretty successful commercial airline pilot. Denzel Washington plays Whip Whitaker, an alcoholic, drug addict, and this is very apparent from the time the camera fades into him right before he needs to make a trip from Florida to Atlanta. Things don’t go too smoothly though for a few reasons, leading to a very tense opening twenty minutes. Following that, an investigation is held into the nature of the plane crash, and the movie sort of turns into a one-character story, which is good when Denzel is on top of his game. Washington, of course, was nominated for Best Actor (l. to Daniel Day-Lewis), and it was easy to see why when he had a lot of different personalities on screen throughout the movie. As an alcoholic, his mood would swing when he was with his girlfriend, a drug addict that he befriends in the hospital (Kelly Reilly, Sherlock Holmes). He keeps pushing people away, including his best friend, attorney, and friends.
The movie does a good job showing what drugs and alcoholism can do to people. There are also many instances of Christian symbolism and unsubtle music choices. The music reminded me of Randy Newman-esque songs, that literally declare what is going on. For instance, while Whitaker is high on cocaine and standing there with his friend (Bruce Greenwood, Star Trek) and his attorney (Don Cheadle), the Beatles’ “With a Little Help From My Friends” is playing in the elevator. Yeah, subtle. Not like it was distracting or anything, but it almost felt too easy and an easy, cliche’ choice to make. Not like I can do any better, of course, but it was just an observation. The big thing I was watching anyway in the movie was Washington’s acting, knowing that he was nominated for the Oscar. Whip Whitaker, to me, was actually pretty unbearable in terms of how much of a jerk he was (and that is putting it nicely). But then again, I watch Mad Men, and there are not any non-jerks in that show. In the end, it is a credit to to Washington’s acting, making him watchable and interesting to watch (in the good way).
I guess, in the end, I don’t know what to say. My critical gears are not exactly whirring today. However, I will say that the movie is well-paced, but perhaps have a few too many moments of recurring issues. Like the same obstacle keeps coming up, which sort of becomes stale. Denzel Washington is very good, and there is some good supporting acting as well. The first twenty minutes are very tense, and then the movie becomes a crawl to the finish line, but not completely in a boring way. I was fully interested the whole way through, and thought the ending was very good considering the rest of the movie. Sorry for such a short review, but like I said, sometimes I just have to sit back and enjoy the movie for what it is. Nothing really to hate about Flight, so if you can make it through the 2 hour runtime, paying most of your attention to the lead actor, you’re going to be fine.
Michael Night's Miscellany 